


October 31st

by froggbones



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: AU, Blood, Comedy, Death, F/F, F/M, Ghosts, Gore, Halloween, Humans, Kinks, M/M, Monsters, Underage Drinking, Vampires, Werewolves, a whole lot of everything, halloween festival, monster high school au, not really obsessive but intense, probably some intense romance, self-inflicted pain, some drama, sometimes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-01
Updated: 2018-01-21
Packaged: 2019-01-07 16:15:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 13
Words: 23,175
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12236313
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/froggbones/pseuds/froggbones
Summary: It's never easy being the new kid at school. Being the first human to attend a school for teenage monsters? Yeah, it's a little intimidating. With the annual Halloween festival growing nearer and nearer, tensions are higher than ever. An evil is brewing, and it's up to a group of society's lowest to restore normality and make things right. Can they do it, or will their differences get in the way? The clock is ticking.





	1. A Fresh Start

**Author's Note:**

> Day 1  
> October 1st, 2017

To tell the truth, Hajime didn't really know what he was expecting when he found out he was going to be the first human to attend a school for monsters. Well, he had had some theories, all of which had immediately been disproved. If he was being honest, he pictured there'd be cobwebs in every corner or vampires constantly at his throat and out for blood. Literally. Now that he stood outside and stared up at the main building though, he realized that wasn't the case. Not entirely, anyway. There wasn't a cobweb in sight (aside from the spiderweb that loomed quite close to his head from an overhead branch), nor were there any bloodsuckers watching from afar. It felt.. normal, but at the same time he felt different.

He was different.

He was the first human to ever attend this place. And for what? Some social experiment? Was it even going to be worth it? God, he'd be lucky if he didn't end up on today's lunch menu. Maybe he was psyching himself out. The only monsters he knew of that were constantly after humans were vampires, and it was eight in the morning on a Monday. Why would a vampire be out and about this early? They'd fry, right? Of course they would! He shouldn't worry so much. He already resisted the urge to throw up his breakfast.

Being the new kid was always tough. He knew from experience. But in this place, he hadn't even stepped through the doors and already he was the odd one out. Here, he was weird. Here, he was prey. He really had no choice left by this point than to suck it up and step inside, but before he could bring himself to do so, he felt a cold breeze brush by him. Or, rather, through him.

It took him a minute to realize, but the girl who now walked in front of him had just gone through him. No, really. He couldn't believe it either. Her literal transparency was a dead giveaway, so he didn't even have to think about what she might be, but he still called out to her. "U-Uh, hey! Hey, wait!" He broke into a jog to catch up. She hadn't gotten far, but it wasn't as easy for a human as it was for her.

The phantom girl turned around. She looked innocent enough (and fairly sleepy), her hair neatly cut to shoulder length and her skirt without a single wrinkle. Her eyes were curious, though they lacked much excitement. She looked pretty bored for it being so early in the morning. She didn't speak. She didn't even respond to the boy with much more than a small wave before turning to head off in a different direction. Hajime took this as an informal invitation to follow her. The last thing he needed was to be the new kid that nobody knew or liked. It was already a month into the school year. It was October 1st and today started his junior year. Yeah. Quite obviously, he wasn't going to have an easy time.

He stopped the girl by a water fountain, but she didn't seem to show much care. She bent over to drink. Hajime scratched the back of his neck. "I-I, uh.. My name's Hajime. H-Hajime Hinata. I'm new here.. My first day.. I was wondering if you could help me out a bit."

The girl didn't answer. She just continued to sip water from the metal fountain. Way to assert yourself, Hajime. He'd just have to up the ante. "Look, er.. I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm not really like you guys. I'm a transfer student."

Finally, the girl lifted her head and looked at Hajime with those same unamused eyes. "You're an international student. You should talk to your guidance counselor. You aren't the only one. We've had a few already this year."

Hajime's mouth dipped down into a slight frown. "No, actually, I'm not here with the international program. I'm hu-"

"Oh. It's nice to meet you, Hugh." She adjusted the straps of her bag across her shoulders and looked ready to head off again. "My name's Chiaki."

"Heh, that's not what I was going to say. I was trying to tell you that I'm a-"

"Human," finished a new voice that came suddenly from around the corner. It didn't sound too hostile, nor was it aggressive, but it certainly wasn't friendly. "Disgusting. Now they're letting raw dinner roam campus? I thought that was against school rules."

The edged voice belonged to a slim, pale girl who emerged from the shadows. She was tall but shorter than Hajime, and she walked with an odd gracefulness that he hadn't expected from someone of her stature. Tied up silver hair adorned her face, but what stood out most were her crimson eyes. The sharpness of them could stop a train dead in its tracks. "You're not fooling anybody. I could smell it from two halls down."

Hajime couldn't help but feel uncomfortable. Unfortunately for him, he was too worried about saving his skin to even consider standing up for himself. "Y-Yeah. Sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"Didn't mean to what? Hype up a feeding frenzy? Well, nice going Normie. You did exactly that."

The ghost by the water fountain watched quietly until she found an opening to speak. "He's new," she murmured. "He didn't know." She leaned back against the wall. "Be fair."

"Hey, I didn't realize this wall could talk."

Chiaki sighed and looked away. "Understandable."

All of a sudden, Hajime was feeling daring. He had no plan for what he was about to do, but whatever it was it was bound to be stupid. He found himself stepping up to the strange girl. "I don't know who you think you are, but you can le-"

He was cut off by a sudden hiss, and a flash of fangs was enough to send him jumping back with every hair on his body sticking up. "Christ!" He just about had a heart attack as he looked up at the now cackling girl, whose pupils had turned to mere slits from the warning she'd just issued. She showed no hesitation in stepping toward him.

"You seem tense, so allow me to clear the air. My name is Peko Pekoyama. My father is one of the most infamous modern vampires to date, and I'll not have a silly little human such as yourself who has no place in this society think he can step up to me and be level. Have I made myself clear?"

Hajime looked almost as pale as the vampire did. "S-So you're like royalty..? Your dad's that well known?"

"Not quite royalty, no. My father has gone through a lot to keep our family name in the history books. Unfortunately, not all of the exposure he's gotten has been good. That's enough out of you. It's no business of yours anyway."

"Wait a second, I thought vampires shrivel up in the sunlight..?"

Peko seemed offended by the assumption. "I beg your pardon? What kind of stereotypes have your people given mine? That's sickening. We don't shrivel, we burn terribly bad. My father decided to cut it cheap and skip out on night classes. I'm stuck here with everyone else and having to lather special lotion all over myself just so I won't turn red as the devil! There's barely another vampire in sight! They all lucked out and get to go to night school. This sucks."

Hajime chuckled wryly. "I-I get it, because you're a vampire, right?"

"No. Because I'm stuck here with people like you. Not everything is a pun, you idiot."

Hajime took a breath. Somehow he'd gotten lucky and avoided death. So far this girl didn't seem to have enough motive to bite him. That was a good thing. He should check though. Better to be safe than sorry. "Hey, uh, this is a weird question, but, like, you're not going to.. bite me, are you?"

This boy couldn't stop offending Peko today. She'd never felt so assaulted in her life. Well, death? "There you go with the stereotypes again! Ugh, it's so gross! Do your research next time, dimwit. Most vampires these days drink substitutes, like animals or something artificially made. Don't assume every vampire wants a taste of you. I'd rather wash my mouth out with garlic sauce."

Damn, harsh. But at least he got his answer. "Right. Sorry. O-Oh, I don't think I told you yet, my name's-"

"Hajime Hinata," Peko finished with a yawn. "I know. I heard it from down the hall."

"I was talking that loud?"

"No. Vampires just have a keen sense of hearing, that's all."

"I see.."

"Look, if we're done here, I'm gonna scram. I have to be somewhere and if I'm late I'll have to reschedule."

"Huh.. Guidance counselor appointment?" Hajime gave a friendly smile. "Maybe we can walk you there. I have to go see mine today too, so we might as well kill two birds with one stone."

Peko looked over at Chiaki (who had dozed off, unsurprisingly), then off to the side. "Right.. Yeah, no, I think I'm just gonna go by myself. It's much more convenient for me and all."

"Oh. Okay.. So, I guess we'll see you again later then? Lunch?"

Peko looked down at her feet for a split second. "Uh.. Yeah. Sure. Lunch it is. See you around." And like that, she was gone.

Hajime let out a heavy sigh and turned back to face Chiaki. "That was eventful. I think I've made some progress tod- Um.. Chiaki?" The girl who had been sleeping only a moment or two ago was now nowhere to be found. Of course. He should've expected that.

Now he was on his own again until lunch.


	2. In the Doghouse

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> October 1st  
> Lunch

It took him a while to find the cafeteria. He'd had to ask around and check with multiple people until he finally got a straight answer. Apparently they all enjoyed not only messing with the new kid but also messing with the only human to set foot inside the building. The ghosts weren't much help. They were all quiet and tired looking, really, and they'd only drifted off or disappeared mid-sentence. No, seriously. They were just gone. Freaking ghosts. He was too scared to even think of approaching any more vampires, but surprisingly, just as Peko had said, they were hard to find. Apparently she really was one of the only few to attend during the day. He'd talked to a few hybrids as well, but they'd found it amusing to throw off the kid who was just trying to survive his first day. At last he'd talked to some sort of gremlin. Her appearance was strange for someone of her kind, with her blonde pigtails and bitter-looking eyes. Hajime had stopped her to ask on her way to class and, after spitting in his face (but only managing to get as high as his chin), she'd finally given him proper directions. He never caught her name, but perhaps it was best that he didn't.

He pushed through the cafeteria doors. Sure enough, he was late. The place was huge. It was much bigger than any cafeteria he'd been to or seen, and it was full of all kinds of strange looking people. Okay, that sort of sounded rude in his head, but he really was the odd one out. It was blatantly obvious too. As soon as he'd stepped into the room, heads started to turn and mouths started to murmur. Dear god, somebody, anybody, save him.

"Hajime!" called a soft, familiar voice from a nearby table. It sat beside the window and offered a perfect view of the field outside. The owner of the voice gave a small wave over in his direction. Thank Christ. He was saved. He began to make his way over but slowed to a halt as he started to take in who was there.

For starters, the one who had called his name had been Chiaki. He still didn't know her last name, but he supposed it didn't matter for now. The only person he knew much about was Peko, considering the fact that she'd openly informed him of her supposed importance in society. Yeah, he'd see about that. She was at the table too, staring at him and sipping vigorously from what looked like a juice box but had a strange label and name he'd never once heard of. Across from her was a boy he hadn't seen before, and already he had weird vibes about this guy. The stranger stared daggers at him, and Hajime could tell he was already asserting dominance solely from his harsh gaze. He had a strange aura to him, almost as if he was naturally aggressive and stubborn. His hair was blond and buzzed, his eyes a pale green that seemed hardened by the lighting in the room. He was dressed casually, though slightly nicer than the others, but still his attire added to his intimidation. Around his neck was a chain necklace with a pendant in the center that appeared to be the claw of a wolf with a detailed silver adornment along its upper half.

Chiaki motioned for Hajime to take a seat. Having no other choice, he sat beside Peko, right across from Chiaki. The strange boy was still eyeing him up. He cleared his throat and straightened his posture. "So... They're letting your kind into this school now?"

Hajime chewed his lip uncomfortably. "My kind?" He tried not to look away, but he could notice Peko roll her eyes and Chiaki stiffen through his peripheral vision.

The other boy leaned closer. He was using his intimidation tactics again. "Yeah. You know. Humans." The word rolled off his tongue with an obvious hint of disgust.

Hajime lifted a shoulder. "A-Actually, I, uh.. I was part of an exchange program. One of your guys went to my school and in turn, I came here. It, um.. It's a little complicated. I guess. This school wasn't my first choice. I'm not trying to invade your spaces or anything, if that's what you-"

"Yeah, whatever. I didn't ask for your fuckin' life story."

Peko was getting a little frustrated, so she gave the boy across from her a warning hiss. It always caught Hajime off guard when she did that. God, was it terrifying. "Stop being so mean, Fuyuhiko," the girl complained. "You were new once too."

"Maybe, but at least I fucking belong here."

Chiaki sighed and shook her head, looking away a bit awkwardly. Hajime just tapped his fingers against his lap. He should at least try to strike up a conversation, right? At least he knew this guy's name now (and the fact that he had a very bad temperament). "That necklace is pretty cool." Fuck.

"Necklace? It's a family pendant, dumbass. What's it matter to you?"

"I just haven't seen anything like it, really. It seems pretty unique. Is that real silver?"

The boy, Fuyuhiko, seemed to recoil at the word. This made him even more flustered and angry. "Silver?! Are you fucking stupid? Do you take me for some kind of idiot?"

"What? No, of course not, I was just asking-"

"Yeah, you were just asking some really fucking stupid questions. Better watch yourself, Normie. I'll tear you limb from limb if you piss me off any more."

Peko looked him in the eyes and scolded, "That's enough. He's new here and clearly very uneducated. His kind have come up with many stereotypes for ours, and it's our job to debunk those with truths. Let's not get into a yelling match over lunch." She sipped her cartoon of red-looking liquid. She looked like a child drinking from a juice box, pouty face and all.

Hajime had expected the dude to retaliate against Peko just as he'd done with him. He was wrong. As soon as Peko'd begun to speak, all of the coldness in Fuyuhiko's eyes seemed to melt away. In an instant he exhibited nothing but pure submissiveness to the girl's command. Huh. That was weird. "Hey, Peko? Can't vampires do that hypnotizing thing with their eyes?"

Peko cringed, scrunching up her nose. "Mental manipulation. Charm, if you will. I understand what you mean, and the answer is yes. But if you think that's what I did, then you're wrong."

"Then what was-?"

"The answer's simple. He's just head-over-heels in love with me."

Fuyuhiko turned a brand new shade of red that Hajime didn't even realize existed until now. "I am not."

"Hush, puppy. You'll pop a vein. There's no use denying it. I don't even have to charm you because you do it to yourself."

Fuyuhiko went silent and grumbled quietly to himself. Hajime seemed faintly amused. "Oh, I get it now. You two are dating?"

One or two heads turned at this. Peko suddenly slammed a sharp elbow into Hajime's rib cage, the boy emitting a loud yelp because of it. "Ow! What the hell was that for?!"

"Keep it down, will you? People can't know."

"What? Why not?" Hajime was starting to piece together bits and pieces in his mind. The claw, the silver, the aggression. Holy shit. "Wait a second.."

"Took you long enough, stupid bastard," the blond grumbled.

Peko chewed the tip of her thumb. "We already get looks when we're around each other. People don't like that we're friends. Our parents don't even know about each other. Imagine what would happen if we started officially dating." She spoke in a whisper, suddenly wary of those lurking around her.

Hajime had finally caught on. "He's a werewolf."

"No shit, Sherwood, I've caught turtles faster than you," Fuyuhiko groaned under his breath.

"Look, okay, I'm trying. How does that even work? Like, can you do it whenever you want, or-"

"Let me stop you right there before you lose a fucking hand. No, I can't, to answer your question. It only happens on the night of a full moon, as cliche as that shit sounds, and it's really fucking painful so I'd honestly prefer not to think about it."

"You say 'fuck' a lot."

"Do you have a fucking problem?"

Hajime cleared his throat and slid down in his seat. Bad idea to challenge the wolf boy, Hajime. Really bad idea. "N-Nope. Continue."

"So, yeah. That's it."

"Oh. Do you guys, like...eat..people?"

"You're legitimately asking me if I fucking eat humans? You're disgusting. What the hell kind of lies are your people spewing about mine?"

Peko scoffed and chimed in, "That's what I said. He thought I disintegrate in sunlight."

"Oh my god."

Hajime lifted his hands defensively. "Okay, hey, hey! It's not my fault. I was fed this stuff since I was a kid. I didn't realize they weren't true. I'm sorry."

Peko huffed and looked away. Meanwhile, Chiaki hadn't said a word since calling his name. She was honestly fighting to stay awake, and he didn't have trouble telling. Fuyuhiko cracked his knuckles. "I eat animals, asshat. Basically all the shit you guys eat, meat-wise. My diet's not too different from yours."

"Oh. Well, that's kinda reassuring. I mean, Chiaki doesn't even eat and Peko just sits there slurping from that weird looking juice box. I've never heard of that brand. Is it some kind of knock-off Hawaiian Punch?"

Peko frowned and set down her carton, furrowing her brow. She wiped her mouth. "What do you mean? What even is that? This is my lunch."

"Just a drink?"

"Are you some kind of idiot? This is my food supplement."

Food supplement. Peko had mentioned something like it earlier. Hajime had to think about that for a second. Huh. Food supplement.. Vampire.. Wait. Oh. Oh no. "That stuff is blood?!"

"No. Well, not entirely. It's artificially produced. There's a mix of animal blood and iron supplements and stuff. I told you, most of us drink it. I mean, it's nowhere as good as the real deal. Sometimes when we're celebrating, Dad and I will treat ourselves, but like I said, we don't feed off humans. That's so old fashioned and gross. It's too unnecessarily messy. Seriously, get with the times Hajime."

"Jesus, sorry." Hajime let his eyes wander over to a group of students crowding around a ladder as one tried to hang up a banner. He couldn't make out entirely what it said, but he did manage to catch the words 'come' and 'festival'. "What're they doing?"

Chiaki had woken from her small nap. She looked over to see what the others were now seeing. "The annual Halloween festival," she murmured, accompanying her words with a yawn. "It's every year on Halloween. It's a big deal around here. Everybody goes to it."

"Yeah? Are you guys gonna go?"

Fuyuhiko sighed. "What part of 'everybody goes to it' didn't you understand, you dipshit? Of course we're going. The whole town usually goes."

Peko dusted off her skirt. "They make us start preparing early on. Today's the first day. It's the biggest event of the year. They always have a bunch of activities this month. You really have no choice but to do them."

Hajime raised an eyebrow as he watched the ladder wobble. Fortunately two kids managed to catch it before anything serious could happen. "Now I'm interested."

"Good, because if we're stuck doing this, so are you. It counts as a participation grade anyway."

"It can't be that bad."

"Oh, it's not. It's actually pretty fun. I just don't like doing things I'm forced to do, you know?"

"Oh. Yeah, I get it."

Chiaki glanced down at her phone and twisted it around to show the others the time. Peko hummed softly. "Darn. Looks like lunch is almost over. Both of you give me your phones, I'm adding my number."

The human and the ghost did as they were told, and within a minute or two the vampire had added her contact into both of their devices. She gave a fangy (toothy would be an understatement) grin. "I'll text you both right now."

She giggled as a new group chat popped up on the other three screens. For some reason she'd called it "The Fangtastic Four" (apparently she was either a huge nerd, or she couldn't keep her hands off of a good pun), but he didn't have time to comment on it because the next thing he knew the bell for next period had rung. He'd just have to message them later. Now it was time to continue his first day of monster school.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updates are Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays!  
> -  
> Two chapters will be posted on Friday.  
> -  
> If anybody has any questions about characters who have so far been introduced, I will gladly answer!


	3. Night 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> October 1st  
> Night 1

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
6:00 pm

He not uh

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
6:03 pm

what

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
6:04 pm

Not you, shut up

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
6:05 pm

HAJIME

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
6:10 pm

WHAT

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
6:13 pm

can we fucking stop yelling

The Fangtastic Four  
Gone Girl  
6:15 pm

Am i late

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
6:16 pm

no

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
6:16 pm

Hajime I saw this cute girl you might be interested in I got her number for you

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
6:17 pm

hajime run

The Fangtastic Four  
Gone Girl  
6:19 pm

....

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
6:20 pm

not interested

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
6:21 pm

Hajime no wait she's so cute

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
6:23 pm

then why don't you date her?

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
6:24 pm

uh

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
6:26 pm

Obviously because I have a boyfriend??? Duh  
Give her a chaaaaance

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
6:37 pm

Hello

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
6:42 pm

HAJIME

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
7:53 pm

So when's that festival thing 

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
7:55 pm

what part did you not understand about "it's on Halloween" dumbass

The Fangtastic Four  
Gone Girl  
7:59

It's all day on October 31st, all night too

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
8:01 pm

Oh sweet  
Haha candy pun

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
8:04 pm

Hajime why the hell didn't you answer my texts

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
8:07 pm

I was fucking eating what the hell

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
8:08 pm

I said I'm not interested stop bothering me

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
8:10 pm

):

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
8:13 pm

babe don't cry

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
8:13 pm

),:

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
8:14 pm

baby no

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
8:15 pm

Jesus Christ

The Fangtastic Four  
Gone Girl  
8:18 pm

Good pun Hajime 

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
8:19 pm

Thanks chiaki 

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
8:21 pm

Hajime only dates huuuuman girls

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
8:22 pm

That's not true I just don't want you hooking me up with someone I haven't even met before wth

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
8:24 pm

Hajime has poor taste

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
8:25 pm

You're dating a werewolf

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
8:28 pm

TAKE IT BACK HES BETTER THAN YOU

The Fangtastic Four  
Gone Girl  
8:29 pm

guys

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
8:34 pm

um do I get a say in any of this??

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
8:36 pm

no

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
8:40 pm

I'll kill you 

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
8:43 pm

Ok bye

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
10:47 pm

Fuyuhiko

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
10:53 pm

what's up

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
10:55 pm

I love you

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
10:55 pm

Come over

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
10:58 pm

Why

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
10:59 pm

Daddy's not home and I'm lonely

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
11:03 pm

Peko it's really late you should be sleeping soon

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
11:06 pm

I'll sleep if you're with me

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
11:08

Fuyuhikoooooo

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
11:11 pm

My dad's gonna kill me

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
11:11 pm

make a wish

The Fangtastic Four  
Me  
11:12 pm

I wish you'd shut the hell up

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
11:12 pm

Your dad doesn't have to know

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
11:12 pm

Hajime!!!

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
11:13 pm

I'm coming over

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
11:16 pm

Wait really

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
11:16 pm

yeah

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
11:18 pm

Omg 

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
11:20 pm

I can't wait

The Fangtastic Four  
Furry  
11:27 pm

Open your door idiot

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
11:27 pm

Hold on

The Fangtastic Four  
Vampy  
11:28 pm

Bye guys

The Fangtastic Four  
Gone Girl  
2:48 am

Am I the only one still awake?

The Fangtastic Four  
Gone Girl  
2:59 am

Yeah I am okay goodnight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double chapter upload due to lack of content in Chapter 3. Really it's only a filler chapter.


	4. Friendly Invite

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> October 3rd  
> Night 3  
> -  
> A little graphic. If blood turns you off, there's not much, but be aware that it's present and heavily implied.

When Peko had invited Hajime over to discuss plans for the upcoming festival, he wasn't really sure what to make of it. A human going over to a vampire's place? Uh, yeah, okay. That totally wasn't a set up for complete disaster. Of course, it was reassuring that she'd invited the others too, so it wasn't like he was going to be alone. It was probably just going to be a bit uncomfortable, considering he really didn't know any monster customs or courtesies or, you know, how to get to her house. It was okay though. He'd figure it out.

She'd told him ahead of time not to worry about knocking. Her father wasn't going to be home, and she'd figured humans didn't have to worry about being invited in like vampires did. Did she seriously think they just barged right in to houses? She honestly probably did, but he couldn't blame her for being ignorant considering how much worse he, himself, was. She'd said to text her when he was approaching, and he'd fully prepared to, only he'd forgotten to charge his phone beforehand, so of course his phone had died.

Great. This probably isn't looking too good right now.

And, it wasn't.

Hajime had gotten there early, ten minutes to their designated meeting time, since he was used to doing so and really didn't want to make a bad impression on the girl with the sharp teeth and quick reflexes. It was a Friday night, luckily, so he could stay as long as he needed or wanted, according to Peko. Her dad apparently went out a lot. She said he was gone for the weekend. Hajime really freaking hoped she was right.

He opened the door, and for some reason his nostrils were suddenly assaulted by the scent of vanilla. Weird. He wondered if it masked the overwhelming scent of death and decay that the two undead bloodsuckers emitted. Okay, that was mean, he'd admit it. He wouldn't say it out loud. Peko would go to town if he did. But in total honesty, all that vanilla at one time was not too pleasant to step into. He found himself holding his breath for a good ten seconds as he walked inside and shut the door behind himself.

The place was huge and strangely cozy. There was a small flame sparking like fiery tongues in the fireplace along the wall. It filled the place with a soft, enveloping warmth that contrasted the bitter chill on the exterior of the household. He hadn't expected a vampire's house to feel so.. homey. For some messed up reason he'd gone with the stereotypes and pictured a kind of dank smelling dungeon, maybe similar to a mausoleum, with coffin beds to adorn the frightening and intimidating interior. Now it was obvious that that wasn't the case. Hajime felt a wave of relief rush over him. Maybe he'd get out of this in one piece.

Only one thing was missing -- Peko. She was nowhere in sight, nowhere in earshot, and it gave Hajime this pang of anxiety. No, it wasn't just anxiety. It was more like dread. To kick off his overactive mind, he wondered if this was the right house. Oh god, how would he explain himself if he'd broken into a stranger's home by mistake? What if it was Peko's house but she'd decided to pull a nasty prank on him? What if he got the time wrong?

No. No, he had to be right. He'd double checked, no, triple checked everything before leaving and twice over just before he'd arrived. This was definitely the right house. But something was.. off. It was eerie.

There were no pictures framed anywhere in the house. There were none along walls and none upon any coffee tables as he strolled through. He arrived in the kitchen, and yet again there was nothing. There was nothing to decorate the walls but a single framed rose above an empty chair at the table. It was frail and dying, as if it had been groped by time; handled with care in its youth but left to let its tender beauty seep away as the years grew shorter and came many more at a time.

Hajime had never seen anything like it. It struck him with awe but left him feeling punched in the gut by an underlying emptiness. There was something about that flower that drew him in, captivating his mind and attention, his heart and his deepest desires, but all the same tearing him in two and forcing his negative thoughts to the forepart of his mind. It somehow said something, screamed something, about this house, this family, the girl he'd only met two days ago, but he failed to be able to place what exactly it was. With the brutal realization, he noticed how long he'd been dwelling on the flora. He took the opportunity to get out of there and move on.

What he found different and unusual about this humble abode was that there were no bedrooms. The building only appeared to be one story too, which left him utterly confused. Where did his friend sleep? Did she even need sleep?

He found both answers when he noticed a strange door to the far left of the hall leading from the kitchen to the bathroom. The only thing he could think of for it to be was a basement door, a cellar, have you, and he could see that it was left open a crack. That was an uncomfortable and weird realization: something, or someone, was in this house. He wasn't alone, and he hoped to god it was just Peko. Please, let it just be Peko.

Hajime had really done way more snooping around at this point than he'd ever wanted to do in his life, especially with somebody who could potentially murder him in his sleep with her mouth (get your mind out of the gutter), but by now he had no choice but to go big or go home. He'd gotten this far. He just hoped he wouldn't die as a result of it.

The descent down the stairs was long and creaky, and the air was stale and chilly. There was no light switch along the steps, no railing against the wall to support him on his way down, and once again a notable absence of decor amidst the darkened hall. He'd gone from feeling comfortable but unnerved to downright creeped out and concerned for his own wellbeing. Peko, please, now was the time to come out, come out wherever you might have gone off to.

He reached the bottom of the steps and was met with a soft, flickering light from down an unlit corridor. Feeling compelled to do so, he felt his legs move him, rather drag him, toward the source of dim brightness. It was the only spot of light downstairs at all as far as the eye could see, and his morbid curiosity drew him forward like a moth to a flame. As he neared, he could make out a slim shadow from the inside, partially sitting up but hunched over so that no features besides a morphed silhouette were discernible.

Hajime stepped in, and the sight he was greeted with was the most shocking thing he'd seen in a long time.

Sitting upon a king sized bed with pillars supporting all four corners and illuminated by the single yellow flickering light from a candlestick nearby was a female figure, panting softly but deeply with her hair hanging loose against her back. The silver tint of her neatly combed locks brought out the blood red silk of the pajama top that shrouded her shoulders. Her legs, presumably wearing bottoms of the same material and hue, were covered by a dark blanket that buried a strange second lump on the mattress that uttered a small grunting noise.

The female gave a light chuckle, a seductive giggle, as she leaned back down toward the hidden figure in the bed. Hajime could hear a faint squishing noise, which led him to believe the worst. What he thought he walked in on was the most embarrassing five seconds of his entire life. He almost turned to leave when the familiar feminine voice purred, "How do you feel?" Perhaps the worst part of it all was the fact that she was completely oblivious to Hajime's presence in the doorway.

A male voice came from under the hunched vampire and drowsily answered, "Like a million bucks." 

Oh god. He knew exactly who they both were. Peko was home. She was right in front of him. And the other one.. He backed up to step out but rammed straight into the door he'd tried so hard to avoid. Peko's head whipped around as soon as she heard the noise, sending stands of her gray hair flying over her shoulder. Needless to say, she was not happy. Not in the slightest. Hajime could've sworn he'd seen a harsh blush on her face in the warm candlelight, but maybe that was just all of the blood rushing to his head in a moment of panic. The next thing he saw was total darkness as the candle went out with a sudden gust of wind. He had only half a second for the flapping of something leather-like to resonate with him before he was slammed against the wall and pinned in the dark. The room was a never-ending cold abyss of inevitable and unfavorable repercussions. His shoulder blades throbbed as the weight against him grew heavier and something sharp on each shoulder dug painfully into his flesh. A low hiss echoed in both ears, closest to his left. "I should kill you right now. I'd have meals for a week."

"I-I didn't see anything, I swear to god!"

"You were supposed to text me when you got here, not snoop around my house like a fucking creep!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, just-! My phone is dead!"

"Well, you're gonna wish you were dead too by the time I'm through with you!"

"Knock it off," a tired voice intervened from the bed. "I have, like, two more minutes."

The girl released Hajime's shoulders almost immediately and replied with a gentler tone, "I'm sorry, baby. I'll be quiet."

The home was still dark. Hajime couldn't see a thing until a flashlight turned on right in front of him. He kind of wish it hadn't. He'd been pretty startled by what he saw.

The person in front of him was Peko alright, fixing her glasses on the bridge of her nose and pushing a long piece of hair behind her ear. Her face was still a bright red, and it was barely just beginning to cool down. The thing that caught Hajime's attention, however, wasn't how red her face was -- it was how thick the crimson stream coming from her lips appeared to be and how unmistakably realistic it was. There was no doubt about it; that was blood, and he knew exactly where it had come from. "Okay, what the fuck?" Hajime asked breathlessly, even more taken aback than he'd been when he'd been pressed against the wall.

Peko's look was grim and somewhat threatening. Hajime really hated the vibes he was getting from her right now (something along the lines of 'I'm going to eat you' or 'If you think that was bad, wait till you see what I'll do to you') but he had to force himself to go with it. This was his friend, after all. Well, at least he hoped she was still his friend. He honestly didn't want to have a vampire as an enemy. He was about to say something else, to apologize and try to defend himself, when Peko's gaze softened and she beat him to it. "I'm sorry," she whispered guiltily, releasing her grip on his shoulders. "You scared me, that's all."

Her behavior had become strangely submissive, which seemed to up Hajime's guard even more than before. "Peko, there's blood on your mouth."

The girl sighed and walked over to the table with the burnt out candle, plucked a Kleenex from a nicely decorated box, and used it to wipe the red from her chin. It was if she hadn't noticed it prior to being told. This girl was weird. Hajime folded his arms. She'd turned the flashlight off. He couldn't see well in the dark, but it was obvious that the other could. "What the hell just happened?"

"Shut the fuck up, I have one minute left," complained the boy laying in the bed on the other side of the room.

Hajime rolled his eyes and lowered his voice. "What the hell just happened?" he repeated. "And what is your boyfriend talking about with his counting and shit?"

Peko groaned and sat on the edge of her bed. The only way Hajime could tell was because he heard the creak of the mattress as she did so. "Look, just.. Ugh, you can't tell anybody about this, got it? Nobody was supposed to know."

"Um.."

"We weren't doing anything considerably risqué," Peko interrupted. "Not by your standards. We were just.. Urgh, I was giving him a high. That's why he's counting. He's fucking high, and almost done for that matter."

"A high?"

"He likes it. Feels good to him. He loves the adrenaline rush. Vampire venom doesn't affect wolves. It just makes them a little loopy and shit. He can't get enough of it. So sometimes he and I just kind of.. It benefits both of us."

"I thought you said you didn't drink human blood?"

"I don't. He's not human. His blood is significantly sweeter than yours. Yours is just bitter."

"Uh, sorry?"

"You should be. Anyway, it usually lasts about twenty minutes to an hour, and his time is almost up. We have an agreement that while he's out of it I can take as much as I want as long as I help him keep a grip on reality. I can stop whenever he wants me to."

"Your relationship is weird."

"Damn, I'm sorry vampire intimacy doesn't meet your human standards. I didn't realize I had to go around sleeping with guys I'm not interested in just to be normal."

Hajime was taken aback. "Jesus, okay. You got me."

The flashlight clicked on again and shone over on Fuyuhiko as he sat up in a daze, holding a white cloth to his neck and tilting his head to the side opposite his open wound. "Thanks, hot stuff."

The girl looked a bit bashful as she looked down to hide her grin. "You're welcome."

Hajime leaned his head back against the wall. God, he was going to need time to recover from all this. "Not to interrupt your couple time or anything, but Peko, can I charge my phone?"

Peko rolled her eyes and pointed to an outlet in the corner. Hajime nodded his thanks and hurried over. The vampire watched closely before mischievously cooing, "Hey, Hajimeee.. I hope you came prepared, because we're having a sleepover tonight."

"We're what?"

"Yep! You, me, this handsome stud, your little girl-crush, and a few others I invited over." Peko gave Hajime an accomplished, toothy grin. Fuyuhiko was silently resonating on the stud comment. Hajime just about had a heart attack.

"Wait, what do you mean by my 'girl-crush'?"

"Oh, don't worry about it, I'm only messing with you. For now." Peko sat up straight and looked toward the door as the doorbell rang from upstairs. She let out a happy squeal and stood up. "Our guests have arrived! We mustn't keep them waiting!"

In the blink of an eye she was a flash of fur and wings, squeaking and doing aerials as she soared off out of the room, down the hall, and up the steps.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you thought this was bad, then it'll only get worse.


	5. Festival Planning Committee Meeting: Underway!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Forewarning:  
> Brief mention of rape and underage sex

When Hajime got upstairs, quite possibly the last thing he expected to see was a crowd of three or four new monsters staring him down in the doorway of the vampire's house. If he was being honest with himself, he still wasn't as intimidated right now as he was when he first met Fuyuhiko. There was something about him he couldn't quite place his finger on. He had some kind of authority to his presence. Even now, his gaze still caught him off guard. The werewolf had the cloth he had found wrapped around his neck. It looked casual that way. It was a clever way to hide the bite mark that lay underneath it.

Peko clapped her hands enthusiastically. "Okay, gang! How about we get to know each other a little better before we start discussing what needs to be discussed?"

An awkward silence filled the room. Peko's expression fell and she growled warningly, "One of you'd better speak up, or else you're not gonna like what comes next."

You could cut the tension with a knife. Hajime watched everybody's shoulders stiffen until one of them finally stepped forward. It was a girl of average stature with golden blonde hair down to her waist. Her eyes shone like two blue oceans and she donned fancy clothing adorned with nice gemstones and jewels. In multiple places she had bandages binding her arms as if to cover something unappealing. She approached Hajime with a sort of regality to her step and aura, but she didn't make a big deal about it. The girl bowed politely and respectfully offered her hand. Hajime hesitantly took it. "My name is Sonia Nevermind! It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance!" Her eyes sparkled joyfully as she spoke. "I've never met a real, live human before! I am so excited to learn much about your culture and traditions!"

Hajime tried for a wry smile but it ended up coming out awkward as hell. "I, uh.. It's nice to meet you, Sonia. I'm flattered that you're so interested in humans and all, but.. There's really not much that's interesting about us."

"Nonsense! Everybody has things to learn and things to be learned. I sincerely hope we can get along!"

"Right," Hajime mumbled slowly, glancing off to the side. Peko was perched on a table and watching like a hawk. He felt a chill run down his spine, but he said nothing about it. Three more people to go, right? How were they going to have a sleepover with this many people? Peko cleared her throat and jutted a thumb over toward Sonia. "Pharaoh's daughter."

"Huh?"

"It means she's a princess, dumbass."

"Oh." Hajime took note of a strand of cloth hanging from the blonde's bicep. It was coming loose, he could tell, and there was quite obviously something grotesque beneath it. He looked away before he could gag. Feeling a cold draft beside him, Hajime turned his head. There stood -- well, levitated only slightly off the ground -- Chiaki with her signature tired yawn. The boy couldn't help but feel relieved. "Hey, Chiaki."

"Hi, Hajime," the girl murmured in response, looking half asleep as usual. Whatever. He'd take what he could get.

A new person stepped forward with obvious reluctance and approached with caution as if Hajime had some sort of disease or something. It was a guy this time, with dark hair and strangely intense eyes. He had only one earring on, to Hajime's confusion, but he supposed it was meant to be that way. He didn't make a comment but instead offered his hand. "Hajime Hinata. Nice to meet you."

The other took it doubtfully and squeezed hard before letting go. Hajime's hand felt crushed and violated. "U-Um.."

"Foolish mortal. How stupid of you to believe you bear the ability to come level to my power! I am the great Gundham Tanaka! With the power of hell and all of its components on my side, you will kneel before my presence!"

Hajime looked totally flustered. Peko just looked bothered. "Can it, Fido, nobody asked for your monologue." She rolled her eyes and stretched her neck to neither side. Fuyuhiko gave the odd boy a sharp snarl as he passed by.

Hajime was a little confused. If Gundham's introduction hadn't shaken him up enough, he hadn't any idea as to why Fuyuhiko had growled at him. He looked over at Peko, who caught his gaze immediately and sighed. "Yeah, I know, he's weird. He's dating Miss Princess over there. He's a hellhound. It's sort of like a werewolf but not really. He can shift more often if he wants to. He's not as important as he claims he is. He's just dramatic and delusional."

"Why did he growl at him..?" Hajime asked, shooting a sharp glance over at Peko's boyfriend. She snorted as if it was a stupid question. "He's territorial."

"Understandable."

Fuyuhiko had a low growl rumbling in his throat. Peko looked over at him and gave him a genuine smile. "Shush.. This is my house, which means it's your territory. He's only visiting. Down, boy."

A strange looking pink-haired boy approached Hajime next, but this one had a more casual stance. "The name's Kazuichi Sou-" He was cut off with a shove and a scream as he fell off to the side.

"I-I-I'm sorry!" whined the girl who had pushed him. "I d-didn't mean to! I tripped!"

"You're always tripping, Mikan," Peko remarked sarcastically.

"I-I know! I'm sorry!" Mikan wailed guiltily. She turned to look at Hajime and bowed profusely. "I-I'm Mikan Tsumiki! I'm sorry if I stepped on your shoes!"

"Uh, you didn't," Hajime said with an uncertain frown. The Kazuichi boy was starting to get up with a groan and one hand to his head. "Fuck's sake.."

"K-Kazuichi, I'm so sorry!" Mikan begged.

"Yeah, yeah, I get it. You don't gotta keep droning on. Anyway, I'm Kazuichi Souda. That's it." In the meantime, Mikan was busy trying not to cry as she fixed up some loose sutures in her leg. She seemed not to mind as she did so.

Peko gave a long sigh and pointed to Kazuichi, then to Mikan. "Incubus. Lab monster."

"Lab Monster?" Hajime asked for clarification.

"Ya know, like Frankenstein? Yeah. She's kinda like a rag doll. She was created, and she falls apart pretty easily."

"And an incubus is...?"

"Um.. A serial date-rapist?"

Kazuichi was quick to defenses. "Shut up! That's not right, and you know it!"

"Uh-huh."

"Peko, I don't fucking rape people! I haven't even had sex with a girl!"

Some of the others couldn't help but laugh. Peko didn't even bother to stifle her laugh like Sonia or Hajime. "An incubus who can't even do his job? That's pathetic."

"That's not my job, you dumbass. You can't make fun of me, you're still a fuckin' virgin too. None of you assholes have done anything along the lines of sleeping around, maybe aside from Mikan and Sonia over there, because Mikan is fucking weird and Sonia's just.. old. So put a cork in it."

Peko's face was red. "I tried," she growled under her breath.

"You tried, and then you chickened out. Don't give me that shit, Peko."

Fuyuhiko shifted closer and uttered a louder growl than before. This time it served as a threat and a warning. Hajime seemed uncomfortable. "Guys.." Chiaki took him by the arm and lightly pulled him off to the side.

The vampire stared straight into the eyes of the foolish incubus who was too late to turn away. The tense silence was broken by the sharp sound of skin meeting skin as her pale hand collided harshly with that of the incubus's cheek. The boy could only flinch as his gaze stayed locked, even trapped, on the other's. "You are in my house," reminded the girl forebodingly. "You will not," she emphasized gravely, "disrespect me under my own roof. Have I made myself clear?"

The incubus swallowed hard, but he found himself nodding against his will. The vampire's upper lip curled into a smile. "Good. That's all." She dropped her gaze and stepped away, making her exit from the room. "Now, if you'll all follow me," she mumbled, "we have important business to attend to."  
\---------------------------------------

Peko led the group out of the foyer and into the living room, immediately collapsing into a leather armchair and eyeing up her friends. "Sit," she ordered. "We've got a lot to talk about."

The others seemed to do as they were told, taking spots on the couch and surrounding furniture, seemingly because they were afraid not to. She didn't look it much, but Peko was a force to be reckoned with. The only one remotely willing to stand up to her was her boyfriend, and even he was fairly submissive. He, of course, was the first to speak up. "Babe, what the hell is all this about? I don't think you've really told anybody the plan. You didn't even tell me."

Peko crossed her legs over the arm of the chair and snickered. It was clear she knew something the others didn't. "I brought you all here to discuss the festival, of course! Since all of us have some sort of involvement with the planning committee."

Hajime slowly raised his hand. "Wait, I was never told about being on the planning committee."

Peko grinned mischievously. "Of course! I know! That's because you're our newest member. Also.. I have you here for a different reason."

"..What's that?" Hajime couldn't help but grow tense. She was staring daggers into his soul. He didn't like it. Fuyuhiko looked a little uncomfortable as something seemed to occur to him. "Peko, now's not the time-"

"Oh, of course it is," the girl purred slyly, tilting her head back toward the ceiling. "Tell me, Hajime. Tell me the truth. Why are you here?"

"..I'm sorry?" Hajime was briefly flustered and caught off guard. "Y-You invited me."

"No, no. I mean, yes, I did, but.. Why are you here? In our community? In our school? I mean.. I have a bit of an idea. The least you could do is tell us."

"Peko," Fuyuhiko grumbled warningly.

"Hush. Let it happen."

Hajime appeared to stiffen in his place on the couch. Chiaki, seated beside him, looked fairly unsure as well. "Come on, we came to discuss the festival, Peko, not to pick on Hajime. He's still very new."

"Oh, of course he is. I'm fully aware. I just want to get a better understanding as to how he ended up here in the first place. I mean.. Since he's going to be on the planning committee and all."

Hajime cleared his throat, a bead of sweat forming at the corner of his brow as he felt all eyes on him. "I got a letter in the mail one day," he started. "It told about a rare opportunity for a new program they were running. I don't really know who 'they' would be. The school? The government? It's somebody, but.. They called it 'The Exchange.' That's the only way they addressed it. All I knew was that some monster kid would be switching places with me for some sort of social experiment."

Peko giggled with a falsely innocent tone and shot a look over at Fuyuhiko. "Your turn."

"God, you're a," the werewolf boy started but was abruptly cut off.

"Wonderful girlfriend, I know, I know. Save your praise for later," Peko cooed jokingly.

Fuyuhiko rolled his eyes and said, "My younger sister got the same letter. She went off to the human school for this school year. I didn't realize it was your school. Although, that's an understatement. I didn't realize it was connected with your arrival until now."

"Oh. I see. I didn't get to meet the other exchange student," Hajime said under his breath, a bit worriedly. 

"Chill out, I ain't holdin' anything against you."

"That's reassuring."

"I never liked the idea of an exchange program. Dad was hesitant about letting her go. Some of your people are fucking crazy. But.. she begged. She put on those goddamned puppy dog eyes and no one could find a good enough reason to say no."

Hajime nodded and looked at the ground. He felt pretty awkward, but who could blame him? He was the only human in a room full of monsters and all of the attention was on him. Peko was staring blankly into the fireplace, the warm, orange light dancing and flickering on and around her pale skin. Hm.. That reminded him of something. "Hey, Peko?"

"Mm?"

"What's with the rose in the kitchen?"

Peko's face almost immediately went slack. Her eyes glassed over behind her thin-rimmed spectacles, and they grew distant as she considered her answer. "We don't talk about it."

"I.. I'm sorry. I just wanted to know if there was any significant meaning behind-"

"I said, we don't talk about it. Is that not enough for you?" Peko hissed with a sudden burst of aggression that caused Hajime's stomach to do two flips.

"Okay, I won't ask again."

The girl seemed to go back to staring deep into the fire, so much so that she needed to be gently shook by Fuyuhiko to get her back on topic. "You got what you wanted. Can we just talk about the festival now?"

"..Yeah, do whatever." The vampire got up and released a breath she didn't know she was holding. "I'll be in the other room for a few minutes. I have to do something."

"Want me to come with?"

"No, thanks. I'm good by myself." With that, she disappeared around the corner. Hajime sent a look over in Fuyuhiko's direction, but he only received a curt shake of the head in return. He turned to face Chiaki beside him, only to find her missing in action. How long had she been gone? Honestly, the way this was going, he didn't blame her.

Fuyuhiko sat up straight and stated firmly, "Alright, F.P.C., let's hear what you guys got."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so very thankful for everybody who's been supportive of and actively reading this story! It's really fun for me to write because I get to explore my own writing style, different topics I wouldn't usually be bringing up, and take some canon plot points and bend them to fit my own little story ;)  
> Let me know if you ever catch on to something I could be giving a little twist to. I'm eager to hear what you guys think once things start picking up!  
> Keep the feedback coming, and thanks so much for reading!


	6. Roses are Red

The meeting wasn't going so well.

"Black streamers? Really? We did that last year, and the year before that, and the year before that! Can't we switch it up for once?" Kazuichi was yelling exasperatedly.

Hajime was scrunched up in his seat, watching silently and awkwardly as the others went at it. Chiaki was still missing, Peko hadn't returned either, and Fuyuhiko was slouched over the arm of his chair, one arm extended and a look of utter irritation on his face. His cheek was pressed up against his bicep and his eyes looked like they had rolled about fifty times over. Sonia and Mikan were just glancing back and forth helplessly as the others bickered.

"Silence! If it has worked in the past, it shall work again! Black streamers stand out most from the rest of the decor," Gundham was declaring proudly. Suddenly he'd become the ultimate party planner and decoration consultant.

Kazuichi groaned into his palm. "God, you're so fucking gay. Can anybody else back me up on this?"

Sonia raised her hand and shamelessly proposed, "Silence, both of you. While I do agree that black seems to stand out above the rest, we have used it most prominently in the past couple of years. Perhaps it's time to veer in another direction for this one. Now, we can still use small additions of black, but it is my suggestion that we have a different primary color focus this year! Mm.. Maybe purple or red."

The incubus found himself smirking over at his apparent rival. "See, you stupid mutt? Even your girlfriend agrees with me." His comment was met with a not-so-kind growl.

Mikan was fidgeting with her fingers. "S-S-So what kind of music should we use?"

The hellhound cracked his knuckles and lifted his voice above the others. "Well, I was thinking-"

"Gundham, sweetheart," Sonia interrupted softly, resting her hand on his. "Maybe we shouldn't use your shower playlist. It's awfully.. loud."

Gundham's face fell to resemble a pout, but he gave in nonetheless. "If it is what the Dark Queen wishes, then it is so."

Hajime let out a heavy sigh. "How about we just use what's current? That way there's stuff for everybody."

The whole congregation looked at him. The boy fought back a gulp. "It's.. just a suggestion, you know? We don't have to do it."

Fuyuhiko still looked bored as ever. "Well, I like it. So it's settled." He paused a moment, his eyes flicking off to the side. His nose twitched, ultimately leading to the soft murmur that escaped his mouth. "Excuse me." The boy proceeded to get up and exit the room, presumably taking the same way Peko had when she'd left. Hajime sat there in silence. He wasn't sure what to do.

Kazuichi spoke up. "He probably wants something."

Hajime sat forward. "Like what?"

"Hell, I don't know. They do weird things. I saw the cloth around his neck. I know what's up."

Sonia folded her hands in her lap. "What they do alone is their business. We shouldn't be digging our ways into it."

"We should if there's a problem," a soft voice said from the other side of the room. Several heads turned to find Chiaki materializing by the fireplace. She stared quietly into the flame. "I saw Peko pass by while I was gone. She looked distressed."

"It's always something," Kazuichi muttered. A few others shot him a look. 

Chiaki came on her merry way back over to Hajime, fazing straight through a couch before taking her seat beside him. The atmosphere around her grew chilly. Hajime thought if he could touch her, she'd be cold as death. "I saw the rose, Hajime. It was beautiful, but it was dying. It's as if it was frozen in time. Somehow, it's preserved. A touch as soft as silk would crumble it to dust." Her eyes were far away as she remembered it. Something about that flower was both mesmerizing and unsettling.

Hajime nodded along with the phantom's words, but half of him was still stuck on her previous statement. "What do you mean by 'distressed?'"

Chiaki took the question calmly. "I saw her hurry by, but she didn't see me. She was upset over something, and she kept her face low. I thought maybe you had said something to offend her again, but then I remembered that she would have only yelled at you. She passed through a door. I didn't see where it led to."

Sonia seemed unnerved. "Perhaps we should see where our friend has gone off to. One of us should make sure she is okay."

Kazuichi leaned back in his spot on the couch. "Not to be rude, Princess, but isn't that what Teen Wolf left to go do? Besides, I don't wanna walk in on some kind of heated make-out session. Three's a crowd."

Hajime tried to reason with them. "Come on. If it was any one of us, she wouldn't think twice about interrupting our conversation."

"That isn't really helping," Chiaki murmured, pulling her knees to her chest.

Mikan finally butted her way into the conversation. "M-Maybe you should go, Hajime. B-B-Besides, we can't really have a committee meeting w-without two of our strongest planners. It-It just wouldn't be fair!"

Hajime's palms began to clam up. "M-Me? Come on, guys, I've only known her for, like, three days."

"Yeah, exactly. Fresh meat," Kazuichi scoffed under his breath. He earned a sharp elbow in the ribs from Mikan, who yelped regretfully after doing so.

"Ow!"

"I-I'm sorry!"

Gundham took his turn to speak. "If we are leaving it to a group decision, I shall be the first to cast my vote for Hajime Hinata!"

"I second that!" shouted Sonia with a raise of her hand.

Hajime swallowed and glanced around. His pulse was starting to race. "G-Guys?"

Slowly, the others exclaimed their support simultaneously.

"Worth a shot."

"Th-Thank you, Hajime!"

"Someone should do it.. You're best fit, I guess. I believe in you." Chiaki gave the boy a tiny smile. That only made the butterflies in his stomach multiply. Oh no. So this was his fate.

"I.."

"Well, get a move on," Kazuichi urged. "We ain't got all night."

Hajime got up. "R-Right.."

With a final glance back at his friends, he went off to follow the path of the other two that had left many moments before.

_______

Hajime regretted this instantly. He'd passed through the other room and found himself in the kitchen again. This entire household had him feeling as if he were walking in circles. The room he'd come out of hadn't been much. It was a dimly lit room with a single large window, silk curtains pushed aside to reveal the large moon. It was nearly full. About two more days, he'd assumed, and he probably wouldn't want to be anywhere near Fuyuhiko. The pale moonlight had shone down on the wooden floor and illuminated the eggshell colored walls. There were, yet again, no pictures to adorn the walls, but instead an aged grandfather clock residing in the corner. It ticked softly --faintly -- with each passing second, and Hajime's anxiety had built gradually with each small jolt.

Then it had chimed.

Hajime had jumped back as it went off, his heart taking a leap of faith in an attempt to escape his chest, though ultimately failing miserably. He'd taken a brief moment to compose himself before continuing his trek.

That was how he'd found himself back in the kitchen. That was how he'd found himself staring back up at the rose again. As much as he wanted to stay and gawk, he hadn't the time. His friend was troubled, and he needed to find her. It'd be really helpful if he could find his way around the house, though.

He went back into the foyer. Nothing. There was a new hallway he hadn't noticed before, lying to the far end of the foyer. Whatever it led to was a long shot, but he figured he'd take it. He really didn't feel like going back down to Peko's bedroom to check, especially not alone again. It was awkward and creepy last time, but he was even more on edge now.

Peko was a vampire. Vampires were unpredictable. This was her territory, and she knew it better than anybody.

He followed the hallway and found a door. He was a nervous wreck, and he couldn't see past it, but he had to. He was going to. He did.

Hajime pushed open the door and held his breath. What he found.. was nothing that he expected. It was a garden. Well, the path to one, anyway. It was dark and brisk outside, but he went out anyway, emerging from the comfy warmth of the inside to the heart wrenching chill of the outside world. The human boy saw nothing of importance. He saw no sign of life, except.. He saw rose bushes. Live, budded rose bushes lined the walkway that he took until he ended up behind the house. The entire layout of this girl's house bewildered him. He was always lost, but every time he was he managed to find something new.

The roses were similar to the one framed inside, he noted, but there was one defining difference: these ones were alive. Hajime only noticed that he had followed the bushes to the back when he looked up and saw a figure sitting on a swing tied to a tree branch. It swayed back and forth gently in the breeze as the figure, which was clearly feminine, held on to the ropes tied to support each side. It was Peko. There was no doubt about it. He approached with caution but stopped when he started to pick up bits and pieces of a soft conversation.

"I don't trust them enough to tell them yet. You're different. You're the only one who knows." It was Peko's voice, clear as day.

"That's your decision. I'm not going to force you into anything. But you ran off and caused a little bit of a scene. Everyone was worried. I came to check on you, if that answers your question." That was definitely Fuyuhiko. He was the only other one out here. "You can come inside. We haven't discussed much else since you left."

"I don't trust myself to go back inside right now. I'm getting urges again."

There was a long pause before the same voice picked up. "You're looking at me like I'm fucking crazy, Fuyuhiko."

"Oh, Christ, I'm sorry. I wasn't- I didn't-" He sighed loudly. "I love you. You're my beautiful little vampire princess. I will do everything in my power to keep you safe. But with this kind of thing.. I don't know what I can do to help."

"You can't. It's that simple."

"Sure I can."

"No," Peko insisted, finally looking up. The bright light of the moon lit up her face more than ever, exaggerating her pale, almost colorless features. Her eyes gave Hajime the same eerie feeling he'd gotten when looking at the rose. Something felt long gone but present at the same time. "You can't."

Fuyuhiko folded his hands in his lap. He was sitting on an old bench, staring down at the ground. "I can go inside and bring you something to eat."

Peko's fingers began to absentmindedly work on their own and pick at each other. "No," she murmured. "It's not as easy as that. My body is craving it again. My stomach is screaming at my head, and my head is screaming at my hands."

"Well, tell them all to shut up."

"I wish I could, baby..."

Fuyuhiko shut his eyes and Hajime ducked under a bush as the boy shifted on the bench. "I wish I knew what was going on with you. I wish I could help."

Peko had sunk a single fang into her own finger and started to clean up the mess with her mouth. "That makes two of us."

"Oh.. Don't- Don't use your own, that's an unnecessary mess."

"I can't use yours again. It's too soon."

Fuyuhiko pinched the bridge of his nose. "We could always use him."

"I.. No. I can't, nor will I. If worse comes to worst, I'll drag Kazuichi into it and tell him he'll get something out of it, or whatever."

"Mhm.. He'd fall for that easily. You ready to go back inside yet, or do you need some extra time? It's getting cold as fuck out here."

Peko chuckled and shook her head. "You go ahead. I'll catch up."

Fuyuhiko smiled with a small hint of relief and got up to kiss her on the forehead. He gave her a small, playful push on the swing, then turned to head back inside. Within a moment, he had disappeared within the hedges.

Hajime was about to follow the other and get out of there before he could be seen, but he was stopped as soon as he heard, "You can come out now. I know how hard that must have been for you."

She knew. Peko always knew.

Hajime did as he was told and stood awkwardly in front of the swing. "I, um.. I'm sorry..."

"Don't be. Sit down and get comfortable. You're right on time. We have a lot to talk about."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Normal updates for other fics should resume in November!


	7. Vampires are Blue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Friday the 13th.

Hajime did as he was told and took a seat on the bench Fuyuhiko had left moments ago. Peko watched silently the whole time, the swing she had perched herself on still rocking back and forth in the breeze as she sucked on the finger she'd pricked with her tooth. The quiet stillness of the outdoors was quite unnerving, but the human boy made no mention of it. "Am I in trouble?"

Peko frowned a little. "Of course not, Hajime. I just need to tell you something. Well.. A few things. Is that okay?"

It was okay, but it was odd. Why the hell had she calmed down all of a sudden after being so rowdy earlier? How had she known he'd come looking for her outside? Hajime nodded simply. It was best just to go with the flow of things right now.

Peko removed her finger from her mouth and wrapped it in the edge of her shirt. She sat up straight and inhaled deeply. "You asked about the rose. I suppose it would only be fair to explain to you who I am.. What I am.. Why a dead flower is so important to my father and I.. You've probably noticed we're in a rose garden. Perhaps that may give you a bit of insight beforehand." She tapped her fingers against her thigh. She was nervous. It didn't take an idiot to know that. Hajime kept his mouth shut and let her continue. "Hajime, I've known you a shorter amount of time than any of the others here tonight, but aside from my boyfriend I feel I can trust you easiest. Is that weird?"

"A little."

Peko chuckled and closed her eyes. "I know you probably think I'm shallow and scary and all that jazz. A lot of people do. I'm really not as much of a bitch as I come off as, I promise. You can ask Fuyuhiko. He's such a sucker, but you gotta love him."

"I never really thought you were shallow. A scary bitch, maybe, but not shallow."

"Whatever you'd think of me, you're right. I was never trying to be mean, you know? When you and I first met, I was more nervous than you. That sounds kinda crazy, right? I mean, you were the first and only human. I've.. I've never met another human. I've never really met.. someone like me."

Hajime's heart skipped a beat. "What?"

"When I told you about my dad, I didn't tell you the full story. He's infamous in our community, especially amongst other vampires, but not for reasons you might think." Peko took a deep breath. "Daddy was trying to keep our family name in the history books. He was trying to keep us relevant. He'd been.. collaborating with humans, aiding them in their times of need. This, of course, was a long time ago. My papa is very old, but despite what you've heard about vampires from your human friends, I'm not. I'm your age. I'm sixteen years old. I was born sixteen years ago, and that is not up for questioning."

"I understand. Continue."

Peko breathed out and nodded. "Right. My father was tried for treason for betraying his people, but he was found not guilty on the account of lack of solid evidence. Dad never thought himself in the wrong. The reason being.. When my father was a boy, younger than you and I, he had been born to and raised by two human parents. Just like you."

Hajime narrowed his eyes. "So your father was..?"

"Human. For the first six years of his life, yes. He was bitten as a young child while he played outside at dusk. His mother had gone in briefly to remove something that had been cooking. He told me once that bats do not hesitate when they strike. He didn't know that then, but he knows that now."

"Holy shit.. I didn't know."

"It took him years to adjust and become comfortable. He thought life was over. In a way, it was. He wouldn't ever be the same, and he'd have to hide his new set of fangs from his parents every time he'd pass by. He would constantly make up excuses to skip dinner. It lasted years, Hajime. Fourteen years, to be exact."

"Goddamn..."

"Because Daddy was born a human but bitten later on, he isn't purebred. That is to say, he doesn't possess pure vampire blood. There are still human connections inside of him. That's why he did what he did. Later on in his life, he met a beautiful young woman. Words could not describe her beauty, and papa had been enticed almost immediately. He did everything he could to speak with her without shaking nervously, until eventually, one day, after they'd dated for years, he proposed. This woman, his new fiancée, was a purebred vampire. She had no trace of human in her bloodline or family tree, and the little that she may have had had been wiped out decades, centuries, prior. This new woman in my dad's life.. She was my mother. And thus Mama came to be. A year after they'd been married, Mama found out she was pregnant, and.. Nine months after that, I showed up. Daddy used to tell me those were the best years of his life. I wonder if he still thinks so."

Hajime examined Peko's body language closely. She avoided eye contact, but she seemed to be holding up okay. The girl started up again. "When a once-bitten vampire and a purebred vampire reproduce, things get complicated. Because the child is of two vampires, it's considered purebred, but because one of those vampires has traces of human blood running through their veins, they're also considered to have human inside of them. The group I'm in.. We're classified as intermediate. They call us the Blood Median."

"That's.. cool-sounding."

"I guess. It kind of sucks though. If somebody ever needed to run a test, they'd use the Blood Median like lab rats."

"..Oh."

"Anyway.. My mother loved roses. They were her favorite flower, and mine now as well. It prompted my dad to construct his own garden from scratch in the backyard just for the two of us. He'd dedicated the rest of his life to making us happy. I'd say he's done a good job so far."

"That's sweet," Hajime murmured.

Peko swallowed a small forming lump in her throat. "Yeah.. You asked about the rose in the house, so.. I'll tell you. I suppose it's obvious by now that I don't speak of my mother. In fact, I.. I try to avoid thinking about her at all. My mom, she..." She took a long pause to compose herself. Hajime gave her a look of concern.

"Hey, take your time."

Peko cleared her throat and quickly wiped her cheek with the back of her hand. Hajime couldn't tell because of how dark it was, but he was about 96% certain that the girl was crying. "She was murdered a few years ago. Maybe five at this point. And I.. I watched it happen." Her eyes were far away as she recounted the tragedy. The vampire let out a soft hiccup. Hajime reached out to take her hand and comfortingly started to pet it with his thumb. "I'm sorry.."

"Not your fault," Peko choked out. "Some people just aren't fast enough to avoid the wooden stakes life throws their way." She covered her face with her free hand and fought back a sob.

"It's okay to cry every once in a while," Hajime noted. "You've been holding it back a while. Repression can only get you so far."

Peko was fast to take his word on it. She found herself bawling her eyes out into the crook of her elbow. Hajime continued to stroke her hand. She deserved to let it out. He wouldn't stop her. 

The girl wasn't finished speaking yet. She decided to force the rest out as she whimpered. "Papa framed the last rose he'd given to her before she passed. He had always been good at preserving things. It's been up there for five years. That's why it's so old and frail. It's worn with time. That single flower is the only thing left of my mom that time didn't take away." She took a minute to calm herself down, wiping her eyes with her sleeve. Gross, her makeup, though subtle, was running. "We leave the seat below the rose empty. It's where Mama used to sit. Nobody has taken that place in half a decade."

"You both sure are dedicated. I'd love for my family to be as close as yours."

Peko scoffed and lifted a shoulder. "It's only me and him now, but I suppose it'll do."

"I'm proud of you, Peko."

"For what?"

"For being so strong. For doing it for yourself, your friends, and your dad. You're a real hero, you know?"

"I'm just a bitch with a sob story."

"Well, Bitch-With-A-Sob-Story," Hajime said, tilting his head to the side. "If you ask me, I think it's good to let things out once in a while."

Peko chuckled to herself. "Just don't tell anybody about this, okay? I don't need them thinking I'm soft."

"You got it. You coming inside anytime soon?"

"I'm gonna chill here a few minutes," Peko whispered, wiping another stray tear. "Just thinking and all."

Hajime started to get up and nodded. "I gotcha. Text me if you need anything, okay?"

Peko gave him a small thumbs up. Hajime flashed a kind, caring smile and turned to disappear back into the hedges like the other boy had done just minutes before.


	8. Furry Dilema

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning!!
> 
> Animal Gore

"Bet you think you're real special."

Hajime stopped suddenly on his way back to the house as a voice emerged from the bushes. He turned to see Fuyuhiko leaning against a tree and taking small sips from a soda can in his hand. The werewolf's expression was unreadable. "She doesn't tell that to just anybody, you know. You and I are the only ones who know."

Hajime frowned and scrunched up his nose. "The rose?"

"It's more than just a rose," Fuyuhiko scolded.

"Evidently."

"So, tell me, Newbie, why do you think she told you that story?"

"Were you eavesdropping?"

"Answer the damn question."

Hajime gulped. "Um.. An act of impulsive passion?"

"Wrong. She fucking trusts you, dumbass. She's only ever trusted one other person with that story, and that's me. So you'd better not go ruining it and tell the whole world."

"I don't even know why she trusts me so much."

"You seem reliable. She's good at reading people. Plus, there's that line of familiarity. I guess she feels like she can rely on you because you both have human ties. To a degree, at least."

"But she's barely-"

"Trust me, I know. She's been a little off since the whole thing happened years ago. She gets lost in fantasyland sometimes. She's weird, but it's nothing I can't handle. I like weird." Fuyuhiko shot a quick glance over toward the hedges. He was speaking quietly enough that he hoped she wouldn't hear, but then again her hearing was usually spot on. He really didn't care if she heard either way. "Of course, she only told you the basics." He sipped his drink again.

"The basics?"

"You seriously thought she told you in-depth details about her past trauma after knowing her for three days? Yikes."

"Then what-?"

"Now, now, let's not get too nosy. That was only the tip of the iceberg, Blood Bag. I'm not about to spill my girlfriend's secrets while she's hardly even out of earshot. What the hell do you take me for?"

Hajime sighed. He was growing a little impatient now. As much as he hated to admit it, he was sort of nosy. "Can't you tell me something else? Just a little bit more?"

Fuyuhiko eyed him with a mischievous edge to his face. He inched closer and murmured, "Her mother was killed by one of you."

The human boy choked on his words. Everything that had almost followed died in his throat. He could only manage to croak out the tiniest, "What?"

Despite Hajime's obvious surprise, Fuyuhiko continued. "Some say it was an act of passion. Others say it was premeditated. Most think it was an act of revenge. On top of that.. Everyone still believes that her death was an accident.. that Peko was the one who was supposed to die."

Hajime's heart stopped and crept up into his throat. His mouth went dry. "So, you mean..?"

"They never caught her killer." Fuyuhiko leaned closer to the point that Hajime was uncomfortable. He went to step back but ended up cornered by the other guy with the soda can and wolf claw chain. "Which means they're still on the loose.. Still on the prowl.. Hunting." His eyes were huge and bore into Hajime's skull. The human's anxiety had spiked majorly by now, and he really just wanted to get out of here.

"O-Okay, that's enough.."

"No, no, you wanted to hear more. I'm telling you more."

"No, really, I'm fine now. It's getting kind of cold anyway, I'll just go back inside." Hajime moved to get away but found himself trapped. Oh no. This wasn't good. "H-Hey, man, come on."

"You wanna see something really scary?"

"I really don't."

"Aw, man. Come on. You haven't lived until you've seen this."

"I'm sure the others are getting worried, and-"

Fuyuhiko didn't even wait for the boy to finish. In a matter of seconds, he'd crouched down against the tree he had just been leaning on, his back facing Hajime. When he finally turned around again, he held a mouse tightly in a clenched fist. "See this?"

"Oh, god."

Fuyuhiko held up the mouse. "This is you." The small, furry creature squirmed and squealed fearfully, desperately trying to free itself from the boy's cold, harsh grip.

Hajime could feel his knees start to wobble. "O-Oh."

"Now.. Say something happens to Peko. She's important to both of us, right? Yeah, of course. But suppose something does happen, and it's because of you and your people. Say, for instance.. She has some sort of allergic reaction to some food or she gets a major splinter. Let's assume it's your fault. You know what's going to happen to you if that happens?"

Hajime suppressed his worst fears and shook his head. Fuyuhiko, keeping his eyes firmly locked on the other boy, did the unthinkable. 

The werewolf lifted the frantic mouse to his mouth without any sign of hesitation (he'd done this before?!) and leveled the helpless creature's neck with his teeth. Before Hajime could even comprehend what was happening, let alone try to stop him, he'd severed the rodent's head with a clean bite, lifted the lifeless body by the tail, and tossed it over toward Hajime. The human boy let out a cowardly shriek as he swerved to avoid being hit by the bloody mouse corpse. Hajime stifled a gag, moving his hand quickly to cover his mouth. He could barely even find the correct words to use or regain his ability to speak. Fuyuhiko still seemed unfazed. What the hell just happened? "Wh-What the ever-living fuck was that?!"

"That's what's going to happen to you if anything happens to my little vampire. Hopefully now you'll have some kind of motivation to make sure the same thing that happened to her mother doesn't happen to Peko."

"Y-You just.. You just bit the head off a rat!"

"It was a mouse, actually."

"It doesn't fucking matter! What kind of sick person does that?"

"Ugh, do I really need to say it? I'm not like you. I'm a hunter, a predator, top of the food chain. 

"That does not explain why you just murdered a mouse!"

"I was proving my point. It wouldn't have been effective enough if I'd just punched you. Got my point across, didn't I?"

"M-My god..."

Fuyuhiko stepped closer, intentionally stepping on the dead mouse and crushing its body into the ground to create a red smear. "This never happened. No one else knows, nor does Peko. It's just me and you, got it? You don't wanna fucking end up like the mouse, do you?"

"I really don't, please no."

"Good." Fuyuhiko stretched his neck and cracked his knuckles before heading straight toward the house. "Let's get going then. I'm sure the others are growing impatient."

Hajime really did not want to be alone anywhere with this guy now. Not only was he intimidated, but he was greatly disturbed. Fuyuhiko was also slightly overprotective, apparently. That was something to watch out for. Right now, though, he had no other choice. Peko was going to be back soon, if she hadn't already heard their conversation, and she was going to get suspicious if they stuck around too long. He was still a little worried about something. "H-Hey, man.. Quick question. So, monster sleepovers... How do they work?"

Fuyuhiko only snickered as he opened the door. "Oh, don't worry, Hajime. You'll learn real soon."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm a day late because of schoolwork, thanks for being patient, pals! Hopefully I can have another update tomorrow at a regular time because this is fairly short. It's not too important, it's mostly a transition into the next part. Nice. I can't keep my eyes open. Goodnight.


	9. Love Bites

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings
> 
> •Underage drinking  
> •Some kinky stuff™  
> •Graphic detailing of blood and it's not really self-harm but it's self-inflicted so just bear that in mind

Hajime did not like monster sleepovers. They'd finished talking about the festival a while ago, and they'd caught Peko up on everything she had missed while she was gone. Unfortunately, that left room for the fun to begin. And Hajime wouldn't really consider it fun.

He'd never really been to a sleepover before. If he was being honest with himself, he never really had many friends to begin with. He wasn't invited to things like parties or hang-outs. Usually he took Friday nights off to spend the night working on something in his room or just doing nothing. This group, though.. They were different. He was the odd one out, but they'd welcomed him into their group with open arms. It was funny. Hajime, the human new kid, could fit in better with the people who weren't even the same species as him.

Kazuichi had suggested Truth or Dare, and in theory, it could have been a harmless game. At least, that's what Hajime had hoped. Everything shifted majorly as soon as someone brought out the booze. He'd tried to refuse when a cup was passed to him, but Peko had scooted over on the floor to reassure him. "It's not alcohol," she said, offering him a cup that was only half full. "It's Nectar infused with Ichor. You can't have too much of it, or it'll eat your insides. Think of it like a double shot of champagne with a spike of vodka. It hits you fast, but I'm not sure how it works on humans. You might not even feel it."

Hajime extended his hand to push her offer away. "No thanks, I really don't drink."

"Come on," whined Kazuichi from the couch, who was already drowning himself in the contents of his cup. "Don't be a fuckin' pussy."

The human boy peered into the cup. It was a thick, golden liquid that smelled sickly sweet. The more he looked, the more it enticed him to take his chances. "Are you sure it's safe?"

"You should be perfectly fine," Peko said with a small lift of her shoulder. "Besides, it's not real nectar and ichor. It's some off-brand stuff the corporate companies produce. It serves the same purpose as your human alcohol. I promise it won't kill you."

Hajime considered his options. Well, he did have the weekend to sleep it off, and he probably wouldn't do anything too rash, knowing himself. Plus, Peko did say she wasn't sure if it worked on humans. Maybe it wouldn't have any effect on him at all. Whatever. He wasn't going to think about it too much. He wanted to do it. He thought he wanted to do it, at least. He didn't need to tell himself twice. The boy took the cup and held his breath as he tilted it to his lips and let the warm, thick liquid run down his throat. The vampire wore an amused grin as she teased, "Bottoms up."

As it turned out, a game of Truth or Dare with a group of drunk sixteen year olds is not the best scenario one would want to have to deal with. Peko's theory had been wrong. That crazy drink had hit Hajime hard, and probably worse than anyone else since he hadn't drank before. He was slouched up against the side of the couch, the cup empty and tipped over on the floor to his left side, while he observed the others with blurry vision. This couldn't end well.

It was a little difficult to fully comprehend what exactly was going on. The second couple in the room was together on the couch, holding the other close in each other's arms. The incubus on the opposite couch had fallen off and now lay on the floor. Mikan, who had been seated next to him, had crawled off somewhere behind the couch, and Hajime had a suspicious feeling about what she might be doing. Peko, who really wasn't even that tipsy, was just leaning her head on her boyfriend's shoulder and watching the madness unfold right before her eyes, her eyebrows only partially raised. Fuyuhiko didn't look too fazed. Hajime supposed he had a high tolerance level. Chiaki had barely sipped her own drink, but she'd passed out in her chair anyway, and Hajime wasn't surprised anymore.

Hajime peered over at the vampire on the couch and furrowed his brow. His head was already starting to throb. "How come you didn't have much?"

The girl shrugged as she examined her fingernails. "I prefer red wine. Plus, it's my house and my party. I'm the one who has to keep all you drunken dimwits in line." She paused for a second as if listening for something before raising her voice and yelling, "Mikan, I swear to god, if I come over there and find you jacking it behind my couch, you're sleeping outside!"

Seconds later, the timid and frantic girl came scrambling out from behind the couch and sprawled out on the floor. "P-Please forgive m-m-me!"

Peko pinched the bridge of her nose and muttered, "This is what I have to put up with." She tilted her head to press her face gently against the nape of her boyfriend's neck. She lightly sniffed the spot she'd previously bitten and purred, "Sweetheart, could you be a dear and get everyone's attention for me? Pretty please?"

Fuyuhiko rolled his eyes. "I can if you promise not to sniff me again. I already gave you what you wanted. You don't get seconds."

"I'm sorry, I can't help it.. You smell so good."

"Weirdo." The boy gave a sharp clearing of his throat and let out a sudden shout. "If you know what's good for you, you'll all listen up!"

Everyone stared at him, but unbeknownst to him or anyone else, that was exactly what Peko had wanted. She gave him a dreamy smile and spared a soft giggle. "You're so good at that." She was good at playing innocent, even at playing an airhead, but he'd always seen right through it. That's what she loved about him. He was down-to-earth in order to combat her spontaneous nature. Still, he wasn't one to brush off a compliment. Sometimes Peko would throw one his way out of the blue just to fuel his ego.

Fuyuhiko scoffed and looked away bashfully. "Yeah, well, when you're gonna be pack leader some day, it's important to start early, you know?"

Peko ran her hand down his arm and answered, "Of course I know.. You're gonna be the best leader they've ever seen."

Fuyuhiko was visibly blushing, but Peko wasn't going to embarrass him in front of everybody. Kazuichi had gotten distracted and had been watching the two for a while now, clearly bored by whatever was apparently going on. "Pek, let's play Truth or Dare."

Fuyuhiko didn't like that idea very much. "While you're drunk off your ass? No way in hell."

Peko frowned a little and curled up by his side. "Shush.. Loosen up a little..."

"Sorry for not trusting the intoxicated sex demon."

"He won't do anything to anyone, and if he does then you have full permission to rip him to shreds."

Kazuichi yawned obnoxiously. "I'm waaaaiting."

Fuyuhiko was rather tense, so Peko started to stroke his hand to calm him down. "Okay. I choose truth."

Kazuichi rolled over and cracked his knuckles, a wicked grin spreading from ear to ear. "List, like, three of your kinks."

The werewolf let a threatening growl erupt from his throat as he snarled, "What'd I fucking tell you? I knew it!"

The vampire girl rested a hand on his chest and snapped, "Can it!" She leaned her face closer to his and pressed her nose lightly against his cheek. "It's fine," she insisted in a soft whisper, her warm breath against his skin causing him to blush a deeper shade of red. "Promise."

Fuyuhiko was still pretty hesitant, and just to drive his point home, he gently hooked his arm around his girlfriend's waist and pulled her close. Peko chuckled at how protective he was being before finally looking at a drunken Kazuichi. She smiled sarcastically and said, "When in doubt, remember your three B's: Biting, Bondage, and Blood."

Hajime scrunched up his nose. Picturing it made him feel a little disgusted. "You have a blood kink?"

"What? You don't believe me?" Peko asked jokingly. "You don't believe a vampire can have a thing for blood?"

"That's like me saying I have a food kink."

"Well, do you?"

"No!"

The girl scoffed and muttered, "Don't knock it till you try it."

Hajime shook his head and said, "God, you're weird."

"It's actually really hot. You wanna see?"

"No, I really don't."

Despite the boy's answer, Peko looked up at her boyfriend and pulled the most desperate puppy eyes she could manage. Fuyuhiko looked down at her and was immediately caught in her trap. She was like a black widow awaiting prey, and he was the small bird that had helplessly gotten entangled in her web. "Don't you try to charm me."

"I don't have to," the girl cooed. "You do it to yourself, remember?"

"I am not giving you my blood in front of everyone."

"Oh, they're drunk off their asses. They don't know what's going on. Pretty please?"

"Babe.."

"Baby... I thought you loved me..."

Fuyuhiko looked a little upset. "I do love you!"

Peko had to stop herself from drooling now as her thoughts ran rampant. "Then let me have some of your sweet, sweet blood."

The werewolf kept his gaze locked on her for a while until he finally decided to lower it. Reluctantly, the boy slowly brought out his arm and extended it for the girl, twisting it so that the crook of his elbow was facing outward toward her. When he looked up again, he saw Peko harshly biting her lip to control herself. In his peripheral vision, he could see Hajime on the floor looking queasy. 

Fuyuhiko could feel his girlfriend's chilly hands on his arm now, dancing along his skin as she felt and examined him for the hundredth time. They'd done this before, but each time she acted as if it was something new. At first he'd been confused, but eventually it became his reason for living. He grasped the pendant around his neck and brought the sharp tip of the claw to the soft spot of his arm. He applied only a light pressure for now as Peko asked the question she never failed to ask each time this happened. "Are you ready?"

"Always."

The boy dug the claw deeper into his skin, enough to create a puncture that drew blood almost immediately. He slid the object down to elongate the cut, giving his girlfriend an eager sparkle in her eye. She looked hungry as she anticipated what was next to come. She looked animalistic. He loved it. The pain was only a small price to pay to see the person most important to him happy. She fueled him. She was his unhealthy obsession, and she knew it.

Hajime was still laying on the floor, and after watching for about five seconds, he'd looked away. He really felt about ready to throw up. He was not in the mood to watch someone get blood drawn. Kazuichi, however, was a different story. He, to say the least, watched with fiery curiosity, his eyes glued to the scene unfolding before him. Hajime couldn't tell whether it was because he was drunk or just a pervert. He chalked it up to it being a mix of both.

Peko's mouth was beyond watering. If it was possible to drown in your own saliva, she probably would have by now. Her round pupils had grown to a size twice as big than they usually were, and they'd slimmed down to form cat-like slits. It took all of her willpower not to lose control and give in to her instincts. Her breathing was heavy, and her nose would twitch every so often as the sweet tang of iron buzzed fresh past her nostrils. She wanted it. No, she needed it. She'd get it, she just needed to be patient. Everything else around her had gone blurry. She couldn't remember what she was doing or how this had even gotten started. She'd zeroed in on the red liquid that prodded her like cattle, and all she could make herself do was keep herself contained and under control. She didn't have much longer. More so, she couldn't wait much longer. She was going to snap. She could feel it. She wished he'd stop teasing her. She wished he'd get to the point. No one needed to get hurt. He'd let her beg and whine, but not tonight. Not now. She wasn't going to put up with it. Something in her was different. It was a scary different. She'd just have to count. She could do that, right? One, two, three, four, five, six.. Six.. Six... She needed it. She needed it. She needed it.

She needed it, and he knew. Usually he would make her wait and cry and plead and beg, but he could already tell that tonight was different. There was a scary look in her eye that he hadn't seen before when they'd done this. The only other time he'd seen it had been the time she'd almost bitten him without permission. She usually had a good handle on her instincts and her urges, but he could tell something was off. Everything in him screamed to call it off and to get her some kind of substitute. It was too risky. Feeding a hungry vampire natural blood was dangerous. Often times, they couldn't control themselves when they wanted something, and they'd try to take it however they could. She could charm him. She never had before, but she could now, and perhaps that worried him. She wouldn't though, right? He trusted her with everything he had. She wouldn't.. She couldn't. She was faithful, and so was he, and he wanted to help her. He wanted to treat her because she deserved it. She was special. She was a godsend in his eyes, and he'd treat her as such. He lifted his gaze from his arm to his girlfriend. She was beautiful. She was crazy, and she was the most gorgeous creature he'd ever seen. She was right. She had no need to charm him. He did only do it to himself, and that was his most fatal flaw.

He met her eyes. He gave her the signal.

In a matter of seconds, all hell broke loose.

She went straight for his neck.


	10. Anger and Exhaustion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic was supposed to end on October 31st but quite obviously I haven't had time for that so I imagine it'll go on a while longer.

Hajime hadn't realized how quick vampires were until now. It also hadn't registered with him just how fast werewolf reflexes were. Apparently that was a thought that he seemed to share with the others in the room. Everyone looked fully awake and aware now. Even Chiaki had woken up from her nap.

Peko had lost control and gone, fangs baring, right for her boyfriend's jugular, and it had happened so fast that nobody had time to react. That is, no one except Fuyuhiko himself. It wasn't clear whether or not he'd dealt with this before, but Hajime had the feeling that he probably had. The wolf boy had caught the vampire by the hair mid-attack and given it a sudden pull, stopping the girl dead in her tracks with a loud, gurgling hissing noise. He held a clump of her silver locks with a sort of fierce intensity in his eyes that were trained on hers. He kept her at an arm's length, which seemed enough to keep her at bay. Her eyes were scary, a deep shade of red adorned her irises while her pupils were that of a cat's, but they stayed focused on his. For a long moment, they held each other's gaze. It wasn't until one of them moved that the tension began to finally ease.

Fuyuhiko lifted his arm. It was bloody now, since it hadn't been treated and it had been cut a minute or two ago, and the vampire's eyes locked on it immediately. It was as if she'd gotten lost in the crimson droplets and streams down his arm. She bit her lip. Her stomach grumbled. Her nose began to twitch again.

Fuyuhiko didn't release his grip, and he observed her behavior intensely. He cautiously scooted closer, bringing his arm toward her face. Her eyes grew bigger, but he grew more wary. "You're going feral on me, Peko. It's really unlike you."

The vampire hissed.

The boy showed no fear or discomfort -- only caution. "You have a craving for animal blood. God knows where that'll take you next." He pinched the bridge of his nose with his bleeding arm and whispered, "I pray you're alive by the end of this weekend. You'd better not end up like your mother."

He was cut off by a violent jerk and a loud growl from deep in the girl's throat.

"Chill out," he warned. "You know what the hell I'm capable of. Don't think I'll hold back just because you're my girl."

That seemed to settle her down a bit. The boy let out a tired sigh and lifted his bloody arm toward her face. He didn't let go of her hair, but instead he allowed her to move closer to his offering. "Clearly we won't get anywhere until you get what you want, so you can have it. But only what I offer you." He extended his arm and Peko went ham.

Fuyuhiko tried to ignore the warm sensation up and down his arm as his girlfriend licked and sucked the blood from his skin. To be honest, if they were alone right now he'd probably be turned on. Unfortunately they weren't, so it was just awkward.

Christ, though, she was still hot.

The others tried to pretend nothing was going on. Kazuichi looked a little frazzled. "So, I guess Truth or Dare is out of the question." 

Mikan chewed her bottom lip as she watched what the vampire was doing. Hajime could tell she wasn't having very clean thoughts, so he decided not to say anything.

Chiaki was nothing but a silent observer. She'd somehow moved from the couch and reappeared right beside Hajime without anybody noticing. He wouldn't say it, but it had given him a nice old heart attack. A million thoughts were racing through his head. Was his friend okay? Probably not. Did he regret even coming here tonight? Yeah, entirely. Would he even leave the place alive? He hoped so, but he didn't find it likely. 

Peko lifted her head. "Anybody got the time?" she asked a bit tiredly. That didn't take long.

"Oh, and like that you're back to normal again," Kazuichi remarked sarcastically.

"Watch your tongue, Souda, before I rip it out and feed it to my dog." She gave a quick side glance to her boyfriend, who she noticed was eyeing her unhappily. "What?"

"You have a little something," Fuyuhiko muttered sarcastically, motioning to a spot of blood at the corner of the girl's mouth. Peko frowned and wiped at her face fairly quickly, looking at her hand as she pulled it away. It seemed as if she was taking notice of the blood for the first time. Her eyes were wide.

"Oh."

"Yeah, 'oh.'"

A long silence fell over the room. The lot observed each other without words. It wasn't until the vampire started to awkwardly lick the rest of the blood from her hand that anything was said.

"Really?" her boyfriend asked with raised eyebrows. "Peko, come on."

"What?"

"'What?' You're about to tell me you don't remember what the fuck just happened? The fact that you went absolutely batshit, no pun intended, doesn't ring any bells to you?"

"I don't even know what the hell you're talking about, can you stop pointing fingers?"

"Pointing fingers? You've got to be kidding me."

"Excuse me?"

Hajime couldn't help but watch awkwardly. He felt bad, like he should look away, but something drew his attention toward the bickering couple. He studied Fuyuhiko's face as the boy lifted his now nearly clean arm to show the puncture wound.

"You don't fucking remember this?!"

Peko looked visibly upset as she stared at his arm. "Fuyuhiko, stop yelling at me, you know I can't do yelling."

"God, I'm sorry, where're my fuckin' manners?" Fuyuhiko growled with bitter sarcasm. "How could I forget about your hypersensitive ears?"

"P-Please stop yelling, you know my ears are super sensitive.."

Sonia leaned over toward them and spoke on the vampire's behalf. "Perhaps you should listen to her. If she says she cannot handle it, then maybe you should stop."

Peko was absentmindedly digging her nails into the heels of her palms. Her eyes screamed with worry as Fuyuhiko quietly recalled what had happened the last time he'd pushed her hearing to the limit. He took a deep breath to compose himself and pulled her into his lap. Leaning his head on her shoulder, he whispered in her ear, "I'm sorry, baby."

"I forgive you."

He'd just have to take a much more gentle and calm approach to this. "You had a little frenzy. You don't remember?"

"You know I can't remember anything about when it happens. I just black out. It's not that it feels like I black out, I just don't remember it at all. It doesn't even feel like anything is missing from my mind."

"Yeah. I get it. You went feral. It's how I feel on full moons. You lose control and it's impossible to take it back."

"Yeah. Exactly. Did I hurt you?" The realization shook Peko to the core, her heart throbbing rapidly in her chest.

Fuyuhiko took her hand in an attempt to calm her down. "Shh, no. No, you didn't hurt me. You almost- No, babe, don't worry."

He could have told her. He would have told her, under any other circumstances. But he could hear it in her voice, and he was thankful not to see the look in her eyes right now. She was hurting and she was remorseful and she was guilty. The last thing he needed was to let her hyperactive mind run rampant with constant sorries and what-ifs. She didn't need it, she didn't deserve it, and he didn't want it. It wasn't healthy, and despite the grief she'd just given him for a good five minutes, he wasn't spiteful a bit. His anger had drained the minute he'd seen her upset, and even though she could have easily killed him, he couldn't stay mad at her. Instead, he pulled her closer and pressed his pursed lips against the spot under her ear. "Mph.. I'm fine."

"But your arm..."

"I did it myself. I did it for you, not because of you. Relax, sweet pea. Everything's peachy."

She didn't need to know. He wouldn't tell her.

"Are you sure?"

"Have I ever lied to you?"

Peko shook her head. Fuyuhiko exhaled a warm breath and closed his eyes. "Exactly. What makes you think I'd start now?"

Peko chewed the corner of her bottom lip. She spoke up with closed eyes. "I know you aren't telling me the full story. I'm just too tired to pry it out of you."

The werewolf chuckled hesitantly. "Just go to bed, loser. I promise I'll tell you eventually, but you should get some sleep right now, okay? Everyone should." He looked over at the others and mouthed, 'Everyone.'

They all seemed to get the memo. Monster and human alike started to scramble for a place to lay. Chiaki, as usual, was ahead of the game.

Peko curled up on the couch and lay her head across her boyfriend's lap. She shut her eyes and breathed out. "I swear, I'm the only vampire who sleeps at night," she murmured. "Sleep well, all of you. We have a lot to look forward to in the morning."

Hajime didn't like the way that sounded, and he really hoped he wasn't the last one up the next day. As if today wasn't bad enough, he wasn't too excited to find out what tomorrow would bring.

It took about twenty minutes, but soon he fell asleep to the sound of two dogs snoring and the faint crackle of burning embers from the fireplace that emanated a comfortable warmth throughout the house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 11/2/17
> 
> hey. I had to edit this chapter and cut out a small portion because I was half asleep when I finished and it wasn't consistent or leading into where I want the story to go. I just replaced it with a line to better transition and create a smoother flow to the chapter. That's it for that.
> 
> As for updates, I'm going to continue the fic, but not at the speed that I wanted to. I hope to write sometime soon, but if you read my latest story then I'm sure you're aware that something terrible has happened and I'm working on handling things accordingly alongside my friends. It isn't stopping me from doing anything, I'm just moving a little slower. Thanks for understanding, guys.  
> As always, thank you so much for reading and for all the attention this fic has gotten. It moves me greatly, and I'm so happy you all enjoy my work. :)


	11. Of Fangs and Fury

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> October 4th  
> 10:43 AM
> 
> -
> 
> Warning:
> 
> Mention of rape and sexual assault

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I RISE FROM THE DEAD, MY MINIONS  
> I am super, super sorry for the long hiatus! The holidays were long and busy, and lack of motivation and little depression phases here and there have been really rough on me. Can't say I'm doing too well right now either, but I'm working on it.  
> This week I have exams and February is booked because of the school musical! AKA another hiatus probably );  
> This week is my birthday! I'll be turning 17 on the 25th and saying sayonara to my childhood in its final year lol, that's scary.  
> I posted a huge life update the other day on @disneyweeb on tumblr, so if you'd like to keep up with my activity, that's the place to go!  
> This is my very first fic ever to reach 1K reads, guys! I'm so excited and flattered by all of the amazing feedback I've received! There is definitely more to come, and juicier details will soon be revealed as the story unfolds...

The next day was already hell. Hajime had just woken up, and his eyes were barely open as the loud bickering echoed painfully in his ears. He really didn't know what else to think besides 'what the fuck.' The boy made himself sit up and rubbed the remaining sleep from his eyes. When the fog cleared from his vision, he could finally tell who it was. 

Peko was sitting up and looking stressed out, her hair messy and her arms angrily crossed over her chest. She glared poison daggers directly at Kazuichi, who was sitting on the arm of the sofa and looking pretty defensive. "That's fucking disgusting!" the vampire was yelling.

"I wasn't gonna do anything! I was just messing with you!"

"Messing with me, right. Do you really expect me to believe that shit?"

"I'd expect you to at least trust me to some degree! I'm not about to get with someone who has a fucking boyfriend." Kazuichi's eyes swept over a tired and pissed off looking Fuyuhiko.

"That isn't the point!"

Hajime decided to intervene. "Woah, woah. Can somebody explain to me what's going on?"

A small voice answered from somewhere behind him. "Kazuichi tried to seduce Peko while she was sleeping."

"It was a joke!" the incubus whined. "I'm not that much of a prick."

"Yeah, you are," Fuyuhiko grumbled, sitting up straight. "Literally anybody in this room could attest to that."

"Anybody, huh? Mikan, whaddya say? 'M I that much of a jerk?"

"I-I-I wouldn't really c-call anyone a j-j-jerk," Mikan whimpered nervously, "but y-you can be p-pretty mean s-s-sometimes."

Apparently Kazuichi hadn't paid much attention to the girl's followup statement, because he looked pretty prideful as he smirked over at Fuyuhiko. The werewolf really didn't understand what Kazuichi was so cocky about and raised an eyebrow, but he let him have his two second moment of glory. Peko wasn't going to be that generous. "The next time you come into my head in the middle of the night, I'm waking myself up and ripping out your throat."

"Yeah? How do you plan on doing that?"

"I have fangs!"

"Fuck your small-ass fangs, the only thing you've proven they're good for is neck-raping your boyfriend!"

"Excuse me?"

"Oh, you heard me loud and clear, Little Miss 'My-Ears-Are-Sensitive.'"

Hajime groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Guys," he mumbled. Chiaki showed up beside him looking bored as ever. She tilted her head to the side as she continued to watch.

"Okay, at least I can get a boyfriend without having to sexually assault someone in their dreams. You're such a lousy virgin."

"Alright Peko, we all know what goes on downstairs in your room while you and him are alone, and it's not what you want people to believe, so you're one to talk about other people having a dry spell."

Fuyuhiko got up and started walking away. "Okay, that's it, I'm getting water."

Hajime shut his eyes and sighed in annoyance. "Can I come too?"

"Knock yourself out, kid."

Hajime really wished he could. He got up off the ground and trailed after the other, following him into the kitchen. The human leaned up against the wall as the werewolf went into the fridge for a drink. He pulled out two water bottles and tossed one over his shoulder. Hajime caught it in his hands rather skillfully as Fuyuhiko closed the fridge. "So what's up with those two?"

"Both of them just love picking fights at ten in the morning."

"I can tell."

"It's pointless trying to reason with them. They both only see their own side." Fuyuhiko took notice of Chiaki's materialization in the corner of the room and gave her a nod of acknowledgment. The girl looked fairly worried. "Are they okay out there?"

"'S normal."

"She's getting awfully heated. Her eyes are doing the flashy thing again. Kazuichi tried to throw a pillow, and Mikan panicked and started crying." 

"They'll calm down eventually. Let them blow off some steam."

"How come you're so calm about everything?" Hajime asked as he cracked open his water bottle. Fuyuhiko just chuckled.

"I've been dating a vampire for, like, four years now."

"Jesus Christ, that long?"

The boy tipped his head downward. "We're good at hiding things."

"When I met you guys at school you seemed like a new couple. You both were freaking out at lunch and everything."

"Peko doesn't tell people things right off the bat, but her intuition is usually spot on. I was pretty surprised with how open she was with you when we met. It sort of bugged me, but I trust her with my life. So when she told you about us dating, we just didn't want you getting us murdered over it. We've been on the downlow for a long time."

"No shit.. She introduced herself pretty openly as soon as I met her though. Even after she labeled me as 'raw dinner.'"

"Wow, I love my girlfriend. She's such a major character contradiction."

Chiaki was trying to pay attention to the discussion in the kitchen while at the same time balancing her attempt to overhear the ongoing argument in the other room. Hajime lifted a shoulder. "I could've sworn she'd already gotten her character arc. Guess I was wrong."

"What do you mean?"

"Huh? Nothing."

The boys exchanged a weird glance. Fuyuhiko was the first to look away. "Yeah, well.. As complex as she is, I still love her. I just don't understand what's been happening with her lately. The whole animalistic B.S. and all. It's not normal for her. She definitely didn't pick it up from me."

Hajime lifted a hand to his face to think. "Yeah.. Hey, dude, when's that full moon again? Is that tonight?"

"Way to change the subject."

"What? No, it just reminded me, that's all."

"Chill out, I know. I'm messing with you. It's tomorrow."

"So.. You're gonna be gone?"

"You plannin' something I don't know about?"

"No, I mean-"

"I won't be in school on Monday. Don't bother looking for me. As for Sunday night.. You'd do best to stay indoors."

"O-Oh."

"It's not safe outside during full moons. There's just something about them that throws people off. They're unlucky. They're dangerous."

"So, uh.. This whole werewolf thing. You were born like that?"

Fuyuhiko looked up at him and stared him dead in the eyes. Hajime didn't feel he had enough strength in him to look away. The boy's gaze was too intense. Fuyuhiko took a deep breath. "I don't really think you understand how Monsterism works." 

The boy shot Chiaki a look. She nodded lightly. Fuyuhiko eyed up Hajime again and walked over to the table. Patting its surface, he grinned. "Take a seat, bud. You've got a lot to learn."


	12. The Root of All Evil

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is hell for me because my phone self-restarted yesterday and I lost the beginning portion where I was explaining everything so it's not as good as it was the first time and it's sort of just like "so this is what it is" whereas the original was actually more in depth and it really sucks

"Monsterism.. So like Humanism, right?" Hajime was curious, and his eyes were wide to show it.

Fuyuhiko sat in a chair and leaned back, setting his water bottle on a coaster. "Sort of, I guess. I don't know much about your 'Humanism' concept, but I'm sure they're pretty similar."

"Okay."

The boy tapped his fingers in his lap. "So the most important thing you need to know about monsters is that even though most of us nowadays were born, monsters didn't just show up in the beginning of the world. We all started out as human. A lot of us are purebreds, but we all didn't just appear when everything started. Humans created monsters. They were usually made or created somehow. Then illnesses spread and curses arose. The reason we're all like this is because of your trashy people. You're all the reason we're isolated and persecuted by the same people who created us."

Hajime didn't really know how to respond. "That's racist."

"Fuck off. If you want to learn about this shit, then shut up and listen."

"Okay, sorry."

"Me though.. Wolfism is a curse. I was born with it, but it's not exactly a different species like you'd probably think. Centuries ago one of my many great grandfathers stole something and got cursed for eternity by this old hag. Now all of his generations to come are stuck having to transform on the full moon every cycle. It's a real pain in the ass. All werewolves stem from him. So basically all of us are directly linked to him, but only indirectly linked to each other. Think of it like some sort of extended family. We all split off into packs. This pendant I always wear," Fuyuhiko looked down at the claw hooked to the chain around his neck, "has been passed down in my family for generations. My dad gave it to me. The leader's usually supposed to wear it, but my dad thought I was better off with it. I'm the heir, so some day I'm gonna be the one in charge."

Hajime, having finally taken a seat, shifted his weight. "That's impressive."

"Whatever, I guess. It is what it is."

Hajime bit his lip and looked down at the table. "So what about Peko and the others?"

Fuyuhiko let out a huff. "Vampirism is a disease. It's a virus that spreads through the blood, but it can only be transmitted through vampire venom. If you somehow manage to be bitten but get away before any venom enters your bloodstream, then you're lucky. Those cases are extremely rare though. Once you've got it, you can't be cured."

"Can Wolfism be cured?"

"No. Monsterism in general can't be cured."

"How can you be born a vampire?"

"The disease gets passed along through the bloodline. It basically becomes a trait you'd pass on to your kids."

Hajime uncertainly eyed up Chiaki. She watched him curiously. "What's up with you?" the boy asked. "Is Ghostism a curse or a disease?"

Chiaki laughed softly at the boy's ignorance. "It isn't called Ghostism, Hajime. It's different from the others. I was never cursed or ill. I'm just dead."

Hajime blinked. "Oh?"

"Unlike the others, I'll never physically age. I've.. I've been dead for a while, actually. It's what happens when the dead don't pass on. It's what happens when you get stuck in Limbo."

"How long have you been dead?"

Chiaki looked down at her hand and started to count. "Since 1945."

Hajime tried to do the math in his head but failed miserably. "How did you die?"

Chiaki smiled sympathetically. "Maybe you should brush up on your history, Hajime. That'll give you a hint. I don't really remember dying. I just remember a big flash and when I woke up, everyone was gone. I didn't realize I was dead until I met others like me. There are a lot of ghosts who go to our school. You've just never seen them yet."

Hajime folded his hands patiently. He nodded as he contemplated that truth, then looked back up to face Fuyuhiko. "And the others?"

"Kazuichi's bloodline was cursed, and Mikan was created. There are a few exceptions. Some monsters were blessed or literally just born. That applies to Sonia and Gundham. Sonia's family was blessed by an Egyptian priest, or whoever was doing that sort of voodoo magic at the time, however long ago it was when she was alive and ruling because their kingdom was facing times of ruin and uprising. Their people had planned a raid of their house and all that and they were going to burn the place to the ground with Sonia and her family in it. So she and her family drank poison provided by the priest, because he said it'd save them and they'd 'resurrect' and come back to life to rule again, or something like that. Well, they didn't. Not right away, at least. They ended up resurrecting like ten years ago. Better late than never, right?"

"Jesus Christ."

"Gundham's story is less complicated. Uh.. His mom did some questionable things and, for some ungodly reason, slept with a hellhound. And somehow, by whatever kind of god is out there, she got pregnant and had him. So I think his dad's some weird hybrid, but he doesn't like to talk about it."

"Oh, Lord."

"Yeah, moving on. A surprising amount of monsters are born the way they are. Gremlins are born small and mischievous. Witches are born practicing witchcraft. We don't talk about them though," Fuyuhiko muttered, lowering his voice.

"Why not?"

"Witches and vampires don't get along. There's this whole long history I won't get into right now. Just don't bring it up ever."

Hajime looked uncertain and sort of taken aback. "Okay. Gotcha." He paused. "Are they still fighting out there?"

Chiaki let out a hum and gave a curt nod. "Yep. Still fighting. Mikan's still crying. All of Sonia's attempts to intervene have failed."

Fuyuhiko shook his head and stood up. "Fuck this, I'm putting an end to it." He walked out of the room without any elaboration. Hajime stayed where he was and gave Chiaki a quizzical look. The girl looked back at him and shrugged.

It was only a few seconds more before they heard a high shriek from the other room, sending both of them over to the doorway to peer out into the living room. Neither of them quite understood what they were seeing.

Peko was dangling over the werewolf's shoulder, her face visibly bothered. "Put me down."

"No. I'm putting you in Time-Out."

"Time-Out? Who the hell do you think I am? Where even is that?"

"Your room. Downstairs. You're going there until you can cool off. I'm sick of the yelling."

"Fuck you," the girl spat, squirming angrily and rebelliously.

"Unless you want to be dropped hard on your head, I'd suggest not acting like a five year old. I think you seriously underestimate me sometimes, and I'm not afraid to show you that I'm not playing around."

"Do it, you fucking mongrel."

Fuyuhiko stopped and had a subtle look of disbelief on his face. He was silent for a minute to think about what she had just said. "What did you just say to me?"

"I said you're a mongrel," the girl hissed more aggressively. "An ugly mutt." She was putting a bitter amount of emphasis on each of those words. It was like she was a totally different person. "You stupid stray."

Sonia gasped quietly at the language being used an covered her ears. At the same time, Gundham had started growling, clearly unhappy with what was being said. Hajime was just confused. He leaned over to Chiaki, who looked unsettled. "What's going on?" he whispered.

Chiaki gnawed on the tip of her thumb. "They're slurs. They're used against all sorts of canine species, but it's typically common for vampires to use them against wolves. It's because there's always been this sense of superiority between the two. Wolves were always considered the minority."

There was a long, uncomfortable silence that had suddenly filled the room. Fuyuhiko broke it after a while by putting her down and standing back. He chewed the inside of his cheek as he stared past her to look at the wall. His eyes did not look happy. "Right. Okay."

Peko let her gaze brush over him but she quickly looked away. There was something off about her, but Hajime couldn't yet place it. Fuyuhiko lowered his head and stuffed his hands into his pockets. "I'm leaving." He turned to head for the door. Peko looked like she wanted to say something for a moment, but she stopped herself. She hardly watched as the boy walked out of the room. She visibly tensed as they all heard the door slam. 

Nobody said a word until Peko finally opened her mouth again. "Everyone get out. Go home."

Hajime frowned. "Wait, what? But we were supposed to start planning for the festival today."

"Did I fucking stutter? Get out of my house," Peko snarled, looking up with a lethal fire in her eyes. It didn't take much else to send the others scattering, picking up their things and scurrying for the front door. Hajime looked over at Chiaki. The poor girl looked worried, but he decided not to acknowledge it much. "Hey, you wanna go get lunch? I know it's kinda sudden, but my parents'll be suspicious if I come home so soon."

Chiaki's eyes switched over to the boy and she gave a lighthearted smile. "I'd enjoy that, I think." She started drifting off toward the door and Hajime followed. 

It was sunny outside, but they were met with a brisk morning chill as they approached the exit. Hajime glanced back over his shoulder one more time, and in those few seconds he could've sworn he'd heard Peko sniffling.

He couldn't help but wonder where Fuyuhiko had gone.


	13. Diner Dash

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning
> 
> •mention of suicide, murder, current events, and slurs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ALRIGHT HEY  
> Here’s another update!!  
> Here’s my little life update from the past week:  
> •I turned 17 on Thursday!  
> •I finished exams  
> •My artwork was selected for an art show at a university, which makes it my first real art show!!  
> That’s about it.   
> Hey, if you have any prompts, questions, suggestions, or comments, please hit me up on tumblr!  
> Feedback is always appreciated, and I love you all. Thanks for motivating me to keep up with this fic!

Hajime didn’t know what he’d expected when he’d asked a ghost out to lunch. He had no idea why it hadn’t registered with him that ghosts probably don’t need to eat lunch and probably don’t get hungry. That kind of put him in an awkward position as he faced Chiaki in the opposite booth. The girl was just sitting there staring at him with a pleasant smile while he tried to avoid eye contact as he sipped from a chocolate milkshake. 

“Are you okay, Hajime? You seem a little weird.”

“Oh. Thanks.”

“No, not that kind of weird. Like, You-Won’t-Look-at-Me-and-I’m-Starting-to-Think-There’s-Something-Wrong kind of weird. Is there something on my face?”

Hajime felt embarrassed as he lifted his gaze. “No, it’s not that. I just feel stupid for not realizing that you, uh.. You don’t really need to eat. That’s all.”

Chiaki laughed lightheartedly. “I’m already dead, Hajime. I don’t think it would do me much good.”

Hajime chuckled stiffly. “Yeah, um.. I got that now.” He swirled his bendy straw around to mix his beverage. Chiaki was intrigued by that.

“The milkshakes we had when I was a kid were killer-diller. They don’t make them like they used to,” the girl sighed.

“Yeah? What was your favorite flavor?”

“I don’t think you’d know what I was talking about if I told you what I grew up with, but I was always big on strawberry. We used to tell ‘em to ‘shake one in the hay’ at the diner every Friday. That’s basically your version of ordering or asking for a refill. It was fun. Over the years, after the incident and all, I started picking up on other kinds of slang. The world was progressing rapidly, and it sucked that I couldn’t experience it for myself, but at the same time I remember that if I’d died peacefully, I wouldn’t get to keep up with the times. I wouldn’t have gotten to meet you either. I know I just met you the other day and all, but I think you’re kinda cool.” Chiaki yawned. “You weren’t scared when I met you.”

“I mean, it’s kind of hard to be scared of one person in particular when you’re the odd one out in a place where you’re scared of everyone,” Hajime responded wryly.

“Oh, yeah. That’s fair.”

“So how long have you been going to Hope’s Peak?”

Chiaki had to think about that. “Let’s see.. It opened in the late ‘60s, so I’d say.. Maybe about since 1971.”

“Woah. That long?”

“It used to be an ordinary school. I’d been wandering for a long time before that with nowhere to go, but I became fixated on Hope’s Peak. It had a nice environment. There were other ghosts there.” Chiaki sighed heavily as she recollected her past. “There were very many of us. The other students had ghost stories and stuff that they’d tell each other. It didn’t bother us too much, but sometimes it got annoying when we were just trying to go about our day. The place officially closed down in the mid-‘80s, probably around ‘84.”

“Really? Why so soon?”

“There was a double-murder-suicide,” Chiaki picked up. “Some guy caught his girlfriend cheating with someone else in the men’s restroom, so he shot them both the next day. After that, he went up to the attic and hanged himself. It was.. a grisly scene, to say the least. The school shut down temporarily for a week for the police to investigate and do their work. When it opened back up later on, there was a whole lot of grief-counseling. The story overall gave the school bad publicity. They closed down for real in 1984 due to so many people dropping out. They couldn’t afford to stay open anymore.”

Hajime looked vaguely uncomfortable. “Holy fuck.”

“By then there were a good twenty-some ghosts. The kid who killed himself never showed his face again, but his girlfriend and her secret boyfriend did. Nobody really liked them. They broke off some weeks after and went their separate ways. We haven’t seen either of them since. It wasn’t until about 1996 that the school reopened as a monster academy. It was sort of lowkey, but it blew up fast. It was controversial and everything. It went to the Supreme Court because the family of the old headmaster wasn’t happy. The court ruled that it was constitutional for all children to receive an education, even if they were monsters. Thus, Hope’s Peak Monster Academy came to be.”

“I.. did not know any of that.”

“Most people don’t,” Chiaki chirped with a cheeky grin. “They only know the urban legends. I lived it. I watched it all happen. This is the part where you call me old, I guess.”

A waitress approached the table and set down a plate of food in front of Hajime. She did it with a smile, but nothing could mask the uncertainty in her eyes as she noticed the kid staring intently at an empty booth seat. Hajime thanked her obliviously as she walked away. He lifted a French fry to his mouth. “I don’t think you’re old. You certainly don’t look it, I mean. I think that’s really cool that you’ve lived through all that.”

“Technically not ‘lived,’ but you know.”

Hajime laughed. “Yeah, I guess. It’s still cool.”

“Thanks.” Chiaki eyed up his food platter. “French fries look different now.”

“What do you mean?”

“I haven’t been to a diner in so long. They used to have crinkles and stuff. Now they’re just kinda covered in crumbs.”

“Crinkles? Some places still have them. It depends on where you go.”

“Oh. Can we go somewhere with Crinkly Fries next time?”

“Sure. What’s the big deal, though? You can’t eat them.”

Chiaki smiled bashfully. “They make me nostalgic. They remind me of my childhood.”

“Okay. I gotcha.”

“Sorry. Does that make sense? It probably sounds weird.”

“No, no! I get it, don’t worry. There’s a place on the other side of town we can hit up. Maybe we’ll take the others too, if they learn to behave themselves in public like normal people.”

“Hajime, if there’s one thing I’ve learned during my years at HPMA, it’s that vampires and werewolves are two of the most difficult monster races to tame. I know it sounds mean and all, but anyone with animalistic qualities in them is hard to cooperate with. Have you seen the news lately? That one dictator guy is like a trigger happy bear talking about the button on his desk. It’s like he can’t wait to wreak havoc on anyone who tries to put him in his place.”

“Yeah, I get it,” Hajime sighed. “I’m just worried about what’s going on with Peko.”

“I wish I knew, but I just met her the other day too. I mean.. I’ve known her. For a while. I just never really talked to her. She always seemed kind of abrasive.”

“Sounds like her.”

“Right? Anyway, I don’t know what’s going on. Maybe she’s got stuff happening in her life and it’ll pass.”

“Maybe. Fuyuhiko seemed really hurt by those names she called him though.”

Chiaki frowned widely. “I know. I’ve never heard anybody use those words when they weren’t talking about someone they hated behind their back. It kind of made me sick. It was really revolting.”

“Think he’ll forgive her?”

“Not right away. Especially not with a full moon coming up. I don’t really know how else to describe a full moon for a werewolf aside from comparing it to a human female’s menstrual cycle.”

Hajime looked down at the ketchup on the fry he’d been about to eat. “Please don’t.”

“Okay, sorry. But yeah, they get really grumpy and irritable. Things start aching and all that. They’re actually really similar.”

“That’s, uh.. nice. I suppose they take after the self-isolation too?”

“Pretty much.”

“Amazing. I don’t think he’s gonna be talking to her for a few days.”

“If he does, it won’t be much. It’ll be extremely hesitant too, if anything. I have no idea how they’ve been together this long. Vampires and werewolves hate each other. They’re supposed to, anyway. Some of them nowadays are more lenient because of the times, you know? But there’s still that underlying racism they’ve picked up from their parents.”

“That sucks.”

“Yeah.. Vampires are kinda mean to ghosts, too. But if there’s anyone they as much, if not more, than werewolves, it’s witches.”

“Witches? Why’s that?”

“I..” Chiaki looked around. “I’m not going to get into it here. I wouldn’t want anyone to feel uncomfortable.”

Hajime glanced around. Still fairly oblivious, he hadn’t really noticed the fact that people were giving him quick, creeped out side-eyes. There was nothing weirder than a sixteen year old boy talking to himself in the window seat booth of a diner. “Who’s gonna be uncomfortable?”

“Never mind, Hajime. I’ll just tell you later, okay?”

The boy shrugged submissively. His curiosity was at its peak, but he wouldn’t push. “Okay.”

“So how are your fries?” Chiaki started to ask, but she was cut off by Hajime’s phone buzzing.

The boy apologized and pulled it from his pocket to read the message he’d just gotten.

Furry  
11:43 am

Dude, meet me at the park.

Hajime furrowed his brow and showed Chiaki. The girl’s expression was unreadable. “What do you think he needs?” Hajime asked. It was kinda weird for him to be receiving a random message like this after what had just happened. Chiaki tilted her head and puffed out her cheeks.

“Maybe he’s just lonely.”

“Doubt it, but okay.”

Me  
11:45 am

Chiaki’s with me, can she come too?

Chiaki stared out the window and tapped her fingers against the table awkwardly as she waited in silence. Hajime’s phone buzzed again after another minute.

Furry  
11:46 am

Idc just get over here

Hajime sighed and showed Chiaki the message. He pushed his plate to the side. “Let’s go I guess.”

“You still have to pay, don’t you?”

“Yeah, I’ll just do it up front and say it was an emergency.” The boy slipped his phone into his pocket. “Come on.”

Chiaki shook her head and mumbled sarcastically, “And so begins another day.”

The girl dematerialized as Hajime grabbed his coat and left the table.

**Author's Note:**

> Updates will occur every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.  
> -  
> Sorry I've been dead for the past month and a half. Junior year is kicking my ass. I did start working on an update for Adventures in Parenting so hopefully that'll happen soon enough. Right now I'm focusing on this one.  
> -  
> Be aware that I'm going to be shifting some personalities around due to what kind of monster they are. Not every character was easy to place, but most of them came naturally to me.  
> Because of the personality switches, I'm going to be exploring different sides of personality and relationships, meaning they could go from lowkey soft to obsessive and intense. I'll update warnings if anything a little mature rated comes up. Some things will be implied, others may end up flat out happening. I don't know yet. I'm not holding back with this story. Use your own discretion. I'm exploring my writing style with this.  
> I've also taken ideas from the original series and bent them into an AU, as you'll see later on. All of these were original ideas, so I'd appreciate some feedback!  
> I'm not going to take requests for this. I'll let the story flow where it needs to.  
> With all that in mind, I hope you guys enjoy. :)  
> It's spooky season!


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